THE  LIBRARY 

OF 

THE  UNIVERSITY 
OF  CALIFORNIA 


GIFT 


IN  MEMORY  OF 

PROFESSOR  WILLIAM  MERRILL 

AND 
MRS.  IMOGENE  MERRILL 


' 


"Oh,  you're  alive!"  she  cried.    "You're  alive!" 


[PAGE  358] 


EXTRICATING 
O  BAD  I  AH 

By  JOSEPH  C.  LINCOLN 


AUTHOR  OF 

"Mary  Gusta,"         "Thankful's  Inheritance,' 
"Kent  Knowles,   Quahaug,"     Etc. 


With  Frontispiece 
By  WALT  LOUDERBACK 


A.  L.  BURT  COMPANY 
Publishers  New  York 

Published  by  arrangement  with   D.   APPLETON   &    COMPANY 


r 


COPYWGHT,  IQI7,  BY 

D.  APPLETON  AND  COMPANY 


Printed  in  the  United  States  of  America 


qer 

L131 

.*•• 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 


CHAPTER   I 

DINNER  at  the  Mansion  House  was  over.  The 
smells  of  fried  "plaice-fish,"  fried  potatoes,  fried 
onions,  fried  doughnuts  and  fried  "turnovers" 
were  a  trifle  less  pervasive  in  the  parlor,  now  that  the 
dining  room  door  was  shut.  On  the  porch  the  aroma 
had  changed  to  that  of  strong  tobacco  smoked  in  stronger 
pipes.  From  the  direction  of  the  kitchen  came  the  sound 
of  washing  dishes. 

Yes,  dinner  at  the  Mansion  House  was  over.  Mrs. 
Euphemia  Hobbs,  hostess  of  the  establishment,  declared 
to  Miss  Ethelinda  Doane,  who  washed  dishes  and  waited 
on  the  table,  that  she  was  thankful  for  it.  "I'm  always 
thankful,"  said  Mrs.  Hobbs,  "when  another  meal's  done 
with  and  out  of  the  way."  Miss  Doane  said  that  she, 
too,  was  thankful. 

"I  try  to  be  thankful  for  whatever  comes  along  in 
this  world,"  she  added,  "but  sometimes  a  person's  thank 
fulness  gets  an  awful  jolt.  I've  always  been  thankful 
that  I  had  a  pretty  name.  I  think  Ethelinda's  real  sort 
of  cute  and  pretty,  don't  you,  Mis5  Hobbs?  Um-hm. 
Well,  t'other  day  I  happened  to  hear  Mr.  Clifford  talkin' 
at  the  table  and  he  said  every  person's  name  meant  some- 

I 

MC36V98 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

thin';  'twas  took  from  some  furrin  language  and  had  a 
meanin'.  I  asked  him  what  Ethelinda  meant  and  he  said 
if  I  looked  where  it  said  'Names  of  Women'  in  the  back 
of  the  big  dictionary  I  could  find  out ;  said  the  language 
'twas  took  from  would  be  in  what  he  called  'brackets' 
right  alongside  of  it.  So  I  went  and  looked  in  your  dic 
tionary  in  the  parlor — I  know  you  wouldn't  care,  Mis' 
Hobbs — and,  sure  enough,  I  found  it.  I  kind  of  hoped 
it  might  mean  'lovely'  or  'beautiful'  or  'true,'  or  some- 
thin'  like  that;  there  was  a  lot  of  'em  that  did.  But 
what  d'you  suppose  it  did  mean?" 

"I  don't  know,  I'm  sure,"  said  the  landlady,  absently. 
"Look  out  for  that  platter,  'Linda ;  you'll  have  it  onto  the 
floor  in  a  minute." 

"No,  no,  I  shan't  neither.  I'm  hangin'  onto  it  just  as 
careful.  Well,  I  guess  you  don't  know  what  that  name 
meant,  Mis'  Hobbs!  \Vhen  I  see  it  I  pretty  nigh  give 
up.  It  means  'noble  snake/  " 

"Noble  which?" 

"Noble  snake.  My-y  soul!  And  for  anybody  hatin* 
snakes  the  way  I  do!  If  I  see  one  a  mile  off  a  body 
could  hear  me  yell  to  glory.  But  to  be  named  after  one, 
and  a  noble  one,  too.  My-y  soul !  But  there  'twas,  right 
in  black  and  white.  And  the  language  'twas  took  from 
was  the  Tee-utt  language." 

"The  what  language,  for  mercy  sakes?" 

"The  Tee-utt  language.  Any  way  that's  how  it  was 
spelt  inside  them  brackets — T-E-U-T.  /  never  heard  of 
it,  did  you,  Mis'  Hobbs?" 

"No,  I'm  sartin  sure  I  never  did." 

"Neither  did  I.     Sounds  like  some  kind  of  Indian  talk 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

to  me.  But  to  be  called  after  a  noble  snake!  Noble — 
that  means  a  critter  about  nine  foot  long,  I  presume 
likely.  Ain't  that  the  worst!  I'm  goin'  to  ask  Mr.  Clif 
ford  about  that  Tee-utt  language  soon's  ever  I  get  a 
chance.  .  .  .  Oh,  my  land!  did  that  plate  break?  Why, 
I  put  it  down  just  as  easy.  Must  have  been  awful  ten 
der,  seems  to  me.  I'm  so  sorry,  but  'twan't  my  fault, 
was  it,  Mis'  Hobbs?  Findin'  out  you're  named  for  a 
snake  makes  anybody  terrible  nervous.  You  don't  car- 
late  Mr.  Clifford  knew  'Ethelinda'  meant  'noble  snake/ 
do  you,  Mis'  Hobbs?" 

Lack  of  breath  caused  Miss  Doane  to  pause  just  here, 
which  afforded  her  employer  an  opportunity  to  express 
her  opinion  of  the  plate  breaking  and  of  Ethelinda's  care 
lessness  in  general.  Ethelinda  replied,  of  course;  if  she 
had  failed  to  reply  at  any  time  and  to  any  remark  those 
who  knew  her  well  would  have  been  tempted  to  send 
for  the  doctor.  Mrs.  Hobbs  was,  herself,  by  no  means 
taciturn,  so  the  subject  was  most  effectually  changed,  and 
neither  the  "noble  snake"  nor  Mr.  Clifford  was  again 
mentioned  during  the  dish  washing. 

Meanwhile,  the  gentleman  responsible  for  the  re 
search  in  "Tee-utt"  nomenclature  was  standing  on  the  top 
step  of  the  porch,  smoking  an  after-dinner  cigar.  Upon 
one  point  he  was  in  perfect  agreement  with  the  landlady 
and  her  helper — he,  too,  was  glad  that  dinner  was  over. 
He  had  been  as  glad  when  breakfast  was  at  an  end ;  he 
knew  he  should  be  equally  pleased  when  supper  was  fin 
ished.  The  conclusion  of  a  meal  at  the  Mansion  House 
was,  to  Irving  Clifford,  a  time  for  mild  rejoicing;  it 

3 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

was  a  satisfaction  to  feel  that  he  would  not  be  called 
upon  to  face  another  for  several  hours  at  least. 

He  stood  there  upon  the  porch  smoking  and  thinking. 
It  was  a  fine  October  day,  clear  and  cool.  The  sky  was 
blue,  the  sea  a  deeper  blue,  the  fields  and  hills  brown 
or  gray  in  their  autumn  dressing.  In  summer  they  were 
green,  but  now  the  grass  was  dead,  the  leaves  of  the  bay- 
berry  and  beach-plum  bushes  fallen,  the  reeds  at  the  edges 
of  the  ponds  broken  and  rusty.  Only  the  clumps  of 
pines,  scattered  here  and  there  over  the  knolls  behind 
the  houses  bordering  Trumet's  main  street,  flared  green 
and  bright,  defying  the  coming  winter.  The  street  itself 
was  almost  empty  of  life.  In  July  and  August  Trumet 
was  a  gay  village  and  at  this  time  of  day  the  sidewalks 
would  have  been  decorated  with  groups  of  summer  peo 
ple,  radiant  in  flannels  and  sport  suits,  bound  for  the 
post  office  and  the  noon  mail.  Now  there  was  no  one, 
or  at  the  most  only  an  occasional  someone.  The  group 
of  two  or  three  "regular  boarders"  seated  on  the  Man 
sion  House  porch  behind  Mr.  Clifford  carefully  noted 
each  passer-by.  It  was  not  often  that  they  could  enjoy 
the  privilege  of  sitting  on  the  piazza  in  October.  Cape 
Cod  Octobers  are  usually  too  chilly  for  that. 

Captain  Ezekiel  Penniman,  retired  shipmaster,  now 
selectman  and  person  of  consequence,  leaned  forward 
in  his  chair  and  looked,  as  he  would  have  said,  a  point 
or  two  up  to  wind'ard. 

"Who's  that  comin'  along?"  he  demanded,  addressing 
the  company  in  general.  "Some  of  you  young  folks  with 
deadlights  that's  fit  to  see  through  tell  me  who  that  is." 

The  only  young  person  on  the  porch  was  Mr.  Clifford. 

4 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

The  others,  besides  Captain  Penniman  himself,  were  old 
Mr.  Laban  Bassett,  commonly  called  "Uncle  Labe,"  and 
Mr.  Peleg  Bearse,  the  fish  peddler.  Their  "deadlights" 
were  no  more  reliable  than  the  captain's. 

"Don't  ask  me,  Zeke,"  said  Uncle  Labe.  "My  eyes 
ain't  no  good  more'n  ten  foot  off  nowadays.  Ask  Peleg, 
maybe  he  can  tell  you." 

"Huh!"  grunted  Mr.  Bearse,  disgustedly,  "don't  ask 
me  nothin'  just  now.  I  busted  my  spectacles  yesterday 
and  since  then  I've  sold  my  fish  by  guess  and  by  god- 
freys  more'n  I  have  by  sight.  I  can  tell  a  plaice-fish 
from  a  cod  'cause  they  ain't  the  same  shape,  but  when 
it  comes  to  tellin'  a  cod  from  a  haddock,  there  you've 
got  me.  All  I  can  see  is  that  somebody's  comin'  up 
street — two  somebodys,  nigh's  I  can  make  out.  Who 
be  they,  I  wonder  ?" 

Mr.  Clifford,  thus  addressed,  looked  in  the  direction 
indicated. 

"One  of  them,"  he  said,  "is  Mr.  Griggs— Mr.  Balaam 
Griggs.  The  other  is  a  stranger  to  me." 

"Eh?  A  stranger?"  Captain  Penniman  leaned  for 
ward  ;  so,  too,  did  "Uncle  Labe"  and  Peleg. 

"A  stranger,  eh?"  exclaimed  the  latter.  "I  want  to 
know!  What  sort  of  a  lookin'  feller  is  he,  I  wonder? 
Never  mind,  they'll  be  abreast  here  in  a  minute.  Then 
I  can  see  for  myself." 

The  stranger,  on  closer  inspection,  proved  to  be  a  little 
man,  dressed  in  what  was  obviously  a  brand-new  suit 
of  clothes,  topped  by  a  brand-new  hat.  He  walked  be 
side  Mr.  Griggs,  looking  up  into  the  latter's  face  and 
talking  eagerly.  Mr.  Griggs  was  long-legged  and  thin 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

and  his  companion's  gait  was  almost  a  trot  in  the  effort 
to  keep  up.  As  the  pair  came  abreast  the  Mansion 
House  Mr.  Griggs  was  speaking. 

"You  leave  it  to  me,  Mr.  Burgess,"  he  was  heard  to 
say.  "You  leave  it  to  me,  sir.  I  take  a  pride  in  such 
things  and  it  won't  be  no  trouble  at  all  for  me  to  do 
it  for  you.  You  just  leave  :t  to  me  and " 

They  passed  out  of  hearing.  Captain  Penniman 
nodded. 

"Ya-as,"  he  drawled,  "you  leave  it  to  him  and  you 
won't  have  much  left  yourself,  I  cal'late.  Who  in  time 
has  Balaam  got  in  tow  now?" 

Uncle  Labe  shook  his  head.  "Burgess — Burgess,"  he 
repeated.  "Where  have  I  heard  that  name  lately? 
Humph !  Burgess  ?" 

"Say!"  Mr.  Bearse  evidently  had  an  idea.  "Say," 
he  cried,  "I  wonder  if  'tain't  the  feller  that  owns  the 
Badscom  place  downtown  there,  the  one  that  lives  up 
to  Wapatomac  and  has  had  that  place  willed  onto  him. 
Seems  to  me  I  heard  he  was  expected  down  most  any 
day  now,  and  Mirandy  Hedge's  girl  has  been  in  there 
cleanin'  house.  I  wouldn't  wonder  if  'twas  him,  I 
snum  if  I  would!  Mirandy  give  out  that  that  feller's 
name  was  Birdgrass  or  some  such  foolishness,  but  she 
never  gets  nothin'  straight.  Burgess — humph!  I'll  bet 
that's  who  'tis." 

Captain  Zeke  sniffed.  "Well,"  he  observed,  "if  Bale 
Griggs  has  got  him  in  his  claws,  he  won't  have  nothin' 
much  but  his  name  in  a  week  or  so.  Of  all  the  con- 
trivin'  schemin'  old —  What  are  you  kickin'  me  for, 
Labe?  Can't  you  keep  your  feet  to  home?" 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

"I—I  wasn't  kickin'  you,  Zeke,"  protested  Mr.  Bassett, 
hastily.  "I  was — was  just  crossin'  my  knees,  that's  all." 

"Crossin*  your  knees!  Crossin'  telegraph  poles! 
What  was  your  knees  doin'  way  over  here  in  the  next 
county?  1—  Eh?  Oh!" 

Both  Uncle  Labe  and  Mr.  Bearse  had  winked  ex 
pressively  and  jerked  their  heads  in  the  direction  of 
Irving  Clifford.  Captain  Zeke  saw  a  light. 

"Urn — yes,  yes,"  he  said  slowly.  "It's  a  nice  day, 
ain't  it.  Coin'  back  on  the  job  so  soon,  are  you,  Irve? 
Back  to  the  cold-storage  so  quick?" 

Clifford,  who  was  at  the  foot  of  the  steps,  turned  as 
he  answered. 

"I'm  not  going  directly  back  to  the  storage  plant,  Cap 
tain,"  he  said.  "I  have  an  errand  over  at  the  machine 
shop  in  South  Trumet.  I  had  at  first  intended  asking 
Seth  Bailey  to  take  me  over  in  his  car,  but  the  fine 
weather  has  tempted  me  and  I  think  I  shall  walk." 

The  three  "regular  boarders"  stared  at  him  in  amaze 
ment. 

"Walk?"  repeated  Captain  Penniman. 

"Walk!"  exclaimed  Uncle  Labe.  "Why,  how  you 
talk!" 

"Walk !"  cried  Peleg.  "Man  alive,  don't  you  know  it's 
all  of  three  mile?" 

Clifford  laughed. 

"You  fellows  down  here  might  almost  as  well  have 
no  feet,"  he  said.  "You  never  use  them  to  take  you 
anywhere.  You  ride,  if  it  is  only  to  call  on  a  neighbor." 

Captain  Zeke  shook  his  head.  "Well,"  he  observed,  "I 
cal'late  I  wouldn't  have  no  feet  if  I  walked  six  miles  on 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

'em  in  one  afternoon;  cal'late  I'd  wear  my  legs  down  to 
stubs,  if  I  did  that.  However,  don't  let  my  legs  inter 
fere  with  yours.  Heave  ahead  and  walk  your  six  mile, 
if  you  want  to." 

The  young  man  laughed  again. 

"Evidently  you  don't  believe  in  exercise,  Captain/'  he 
said. 

"Yes,  I  do— for  other  folks.  Why  don't  you  walk 
another  six  mile  for  me  and  Labe  and  Peleg?  That 
kind  of  exercise  might  do  us  good ;  eh,  boys  ?" 

The  fish  peddler  and  his  companion  doubled  up  in 
hilarious  appreciation,  and  Irving  Clifford  waved  his 
hand  in  farewell  and  strode  away  down  the  path  to 
the  gate.  Uncle  Labe  peered  after  him. 

"Humph!"  he  grunted.  "He's  goin'  to  the  east'ard, 
ain't  he?  How's  he  cal'latin'  to  get  to  South  Trumet 
that  way?" 

Mr.  Bearse  answered.  "Wa-al,"  he  drawled,  "he  can 
get  there  that  way  by  goin'  around  the  lower  road,  I 
presume  likely." 

"The  lower  road !  Yes,  so  can  a  feller  get  to  the 
North  Pole  by  goin'  south,  I  cal'late,  but  he'd  have  to 
travel  clear  around  the  world  to  do  it.  Why,  the  lower 
road's  another  three-quarters  of  a  mile,  good,  out  of  his 
way." 

Captain  Zeke  grinned.  "Maybe  so,"  he  observed,  "but 
if  he  went  straight,  same  as  you  and  I'd  go,  Labe,  Ba 
laam  Griggs'  house  would  be  three-quarters  of  a  mile 
out  of  that  way,  wouldn't  it?" 

Peleg  chuckled  and  looked  wise.  Uncle  Labe  rubbed 
his  chin. 

8 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

"I  see,"  he  said.  "Yes,  yes,  I — see.  Mary  Barstow, 
eh?" 

"Sartin  sure.  Can't  you  remember  the  time,  Uncle 
Labe,  when  it  took  more'n  three-quarters  of  a  mile  of 
walkin'  to  keep  you  from  your  girl  ?  I  can,  if  you  can't." 

"I  can  remember  that  all  right,  Zeke  Penniman,  old 
as  I  be.  But  how  do  you  know  there's  anythin'  in  all 
this  talk?  Why  should  a  smart,  likely,  promisin'  young 
engineer  feller  like  Irve  Clifford  be  hangin'  around 
Balaam  Griggs'  stepdarter?  'Tain't  for  money;  Mary,  nor 
nobody  else,  '11  ever  get  a  cent  of  that,  long's  Balaam 
lives.  For  gettin'  cash  and  hangin'  onto  it  he  beats  any 
body  ever  7  see." 

The  captain  nodded. 

"I  wouldn't  trust  Bale  Griggs'  spirit  on  the  golden 
streets  up  aloft,"  he  observed ;  "not  if  the  pavement  was 
anyways  loose,  I  wouldn't.  But  Irve  Clifford  ain't  after 
no  Griggs  money.  If  he's  after  anything  of  Balaam's, 
it's  the  stepdaughter.  Mary  Barstow's  pretty  and  she's 
a  mighty  nice,  smart,  able  girl.  If  Irve  gets  her  for  a 
wife,  he'll  get  a  good  one.  I  don't  know's  he  wants  her, 
or  she  him,  but  there's  been  consider'ble  town  talk  lately." 

"One  thing  makes  me  think  there  may  be  somethin'  in 
it,"  put  in  Bearse,  "is  the  way  Balaam  acts.  He's  as 
cranky  as  all  get-out.  All  you've  got  to  do  is  heave  out 
a  hint  about  Irvin'  Clifford  takin'  consider'ble  many 
walks  down  the  lower  road  lately  and  away  goes  Balaam 
up  in  the  air,  hollerin'  out  that  it's  all  a  passel  of  lies. 
What  makes  him  so  anxious  to  call  it  a  lie  if  it  ain't 
the  truth  ?  Most  of  his  own  truth  is  lies,  I  know  that." 

Mr.  Bassett  borrowed  a  match  from  Captain  Zeke* 

9 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

relit  his  pipe  and  said:  "You  can't  tell  much  by  that, 
Peleg.  Balaam  acts  the  same  way  whenever  anybody 
gets  beauin'  around  Mary.  You'd  think  he'd  want  to  get 
her  married  and  off  his  hands,  she  bein'  a  stepdarter  and 
with  no  money  fur's  anybody  knows ;  but  he  don't  act  as 
if  he  did.  Just  mention  Mary  Barstow's  name  along 
with  some  feller's  and  Balaam  gets  sorer'n  a  stubbed 
toe.  I  can't  understand  it,  and  neither  can  a  whole  pile 
of  folks.  But  I'll  tell  him  this  for  his  own  good — he 
won't  find  any  better  young  chap  than  Irvin'  Clifford. 
He's  one  chance  in  a  thousand,  that's  what  he  is." 

At  that  moment  Mr.  Clifford,  quite  unconscious  that 
he  and  his  most  personal  feelings  and  aspirations  were 
subjects  of  discussion,  was  turning  from  the  main  road 
into  the  lower  road.  The  corner  of  the  main  and  lower 
roads  is  Trumet's  business  center.  Snow's  "Dry  Goods, 
Notions  and  General  Store"  is  there,  and  Lathrop's 
"Drugs,  Toilet  Articles,  Ice  Cream,  Soda  and  Cigars," 
and  Wixon's  "Boots,  Shoes,  Rubbers,  Corn,  Hay  and 
Feed."  The  post  office  used  to  be  there  before  the  change 
of  administration  switched  it  from  Mr.  Hezekiah 
Wixon's  lingering  grasp  and  bestowed  it  upon  Philander 
Cahoon  a  half  mile  to  the  "west'ard." 

In  summer  the  corner  is  a  busy  place,  but  in  October 
it,  like  the  rest  of  the  town,  is  quiet  and  almost  deserted. 
Irving  Clifford  saw  no  one  as  he  turned  into  the  lower 
road,  but  at  least  four  pairs  of  eyes  saw  him,  eyes  peer 
ing  from  the  windows  of  the  various  stores,  and  four 
tongues  made  sarcastic  observations  concerning  his 
probable  destination.  It  may  be  true  that  Love  is  blind ; 
it  seems  to  be  equally  true  that  all  the  rest  of  creation 

10 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

has  its  eyes  wide  open  to  watch  the  sightless  god  upon 
his  way. 

The  lower  road,  at  first  bordered  by  the  usual  story- 
and-a-half  Cape  Cod  houses,  with  thick  red  chimneys  and 
green  blinds,  curves  away  to  the  south  and  southwest 
until,  after  about  a  mile  of  curving,  it  rejoins  the  main 
road  again  at  Eldridge's  Corner  at  the  western  end  of 
the  village.  For  the  most  part  its  way  lies  over  the  hills 
and  along  the  bluffs  bordering  the  bay,  and  land  on  the 
bay  front,  once  worthless  except  for  pasture,  is  now  val 
uable  as  the  site  of  summer  homes. 

Irving  Clifford  strode  briskly  along  the  lower  road 
until  he  reached  the  foot  of  the  slight  eminence  known 
locally  as  "Knowles'  Hill."  At  the  crest  of  this  hill  on 
the  landward  side  stood  a  good-sized  white  house,  sur 
rounded  by  a  picket  fence,  and  with  two  big  silver-leaf 
trees  in  its  front  yard.  A  dingy  sign  attached  to  the 
picket  fence  read:  "Balaam  H.  Griggs.  Real  Estate, 
Insurance,  Money  Loaned  on  Mortgages,  etc.,  etc.  Gen 
uine  Antiques  Bought  and  Sold."  At  the  bottom  of  this 
sign  a  pasteboard  placard  was  nailed,  upon  which  was 
lettered  in  black  crayon  the  words:  "FRONT  DOOR 
LOCKED.  Come  Round  Back." 

It  might  have  been  noticed — in  fact,  it  was  noticed  by 
Miss  Sarepta  Hatch,  nearest  neighbor  on  the  right,  and 
Mrs.  Elvira  Ginn,  nearest  neighbor  on  the  left — that, 
as  Mr.  Clifford  approached  the  foot  of  Knowles'  Hill, 
his  hitherto  brisk  stride  became  a  trifle  slower.  It 
slowed  still  more  as  he  climbed  the  hill  until,  when  he 
reached  the  center  of  the  sidewalk  before  the  house  with 
the  white  picket  fence,  it  had  become  very  slow  indeed. 
2  ii 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

Also  it  might  have  been — and  was — noticed  that  the 
young  man's  glance  seemed  to  rest  wistfully,  almost 
hopefully,  upon  the  side  door  of  the  white  house.  And 
then  that  door  opened  and  a  young  woman  came  out. 

She  did  not  appear  to  be  aware  of  Mr.  Clifford's 
proximity;  in  fact,  she  was  almost  at  the  gate  in  the 
picket  fence  when  she  raised  her  eyes  and  saw  him.  And 
she  was,  plainly,  very  much  surprised  to  see  him.  And 
it  was  equally  plain  that  he  was  very  much  surprised  to 
see  her. 

"Why,  Miss  Barstow!"  he  exclaimed.  "Good  after 
noon  !" 

Miss  Barstow  was  just  a  little  confused,  but  she  smiled 
— an  operation  distinctly  not  unpleasant  to  witness — and 
held  out  her  hand. 

"Why,  good  afternoon,  Mr.  Clifford,"  she  said.  "You 
did  decide  to  do  it,  after  all,  then?" 

Clifford  shook  hands  with  her  and  opened  the  gate. 

"Yes,"  he  said,  closing  it  after  she  had  come  out,  "I 
decided  to  walk.  It  was  such  a  beautiful  day  I  couldn't 
resist  the  temptation.  I  came  around  this  way  because — 
er — because  it  made  the  walk  a  little  longer,  you  see. 
And  you — you  were  going  for  a  walk,  too?" 

They  fell  into  step  and,  quite  oblivious  of  the  fact  that 
a  window  pane  in  Miss  Sarepta  Hatch's  residence  and 
one  in  the  front  hall  of  the  house  occupied  by  Mrs. 
Elvira  Ginn  were  flattening  the  noses  of  eager  watchers, 
walked  onward  together.  Miss  Barstow's  eyes  were 
brown  and  their  lashes  were  long  and  brown,  and  the 
cool  breeze  from  the  bay  fluttered  a  strand  of  her  brown 
hair  so  that  the  October  sunlight  shining  through  it  made 

12 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

it  look  like  spun  silk,  or  threads  of  gold,  or  something 
else  equally  shining  and  fascinating  and  pretty.  All  of 
which  Irving  Clifford  may  or  may  not  have  noticed. 

"Yes,"  she  said,  answering  his  question,  "I  couldn't  re 
sist  the  day,  either.  I  had  that  errand  up  at  the  dress 
maker's  and,  although  Mr.  Griggs  told  me  I  had  better 
harness  the  horse,  I  decided  to  walk.  You  remember  I 
told  you  I  thought  I  might." 

"Oh,  yes,  so  you  did.  I  remember  you  said  something 
about  it." 

"Yes,  I  did.  And  you  spoke  of  walking  all  the  way 
to  South  Trumet.  But  of  course  I  didn't  think  you 
meant  it." 

Now  that  very  morning,  after  breakfast,  at  the  post 
office,  these  two  young  people  had  met  by  chance,  and 
there  Miss  Barstow  had  spoken  of  her  errand  to  the 
dressmaker's  and  of  her  intention  of  walking  instead  of 
riding,  and  that  she  should  probably  start  for  the  walk 
about  half-past  one  that  afternoon.  And  Mr.  Clifford 
had  suddenly  discovered  that  it  was  a  beautiful  day  for 
walking  and  that  he  might  walk  to  South  Trumet  that 
same  afternoon.  And,  although  neither  of  them  men 
tioned  it,  both  were  aware  that  Miss  Carrie  Cahoon,  the 
dressmaker,  lived  on  the  South  Trumet  road  about  half 
a  mile  from  the  village.  And  now,  when  all  this  con 
versation  had,  according  to  the  admissions  of  both  sides, 
been,  if  not  forgotten,  at  least  not  taken  seriously,  they 
had  met  almost  at  the  hour  named,  half -past  one,  and 
were  walking  together.  Amazing  coincidence. 

They  talked  of  the  weather,  of  course,  and  of  other 
equally  safe  and  sane  topics.  Miss  Barstow  asked  how 

13 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

the  work  at  the  new  cold-storage  plant  was  progressing. 
She  supposed  they  would  be  installing  the  engines  pretty 
soon.  Mr.  Clifford  said  that  only  portions  of  the  en 
gines  had  arrived  as  yet,  and  that  the  installation  would 
not  begin  for  at  least  a  fortnight. 

"How  long  will  it  take?"  asked  the  young  lady. 

"I  don't  know,"  was  the  answer.  "I  presume  it  will  be 
necessary  for  me  to  be  here  in  Trumet  for  nine  or  ten 
months  more,  perhaps.  Ten  months  should  finish  the 
plant  and  give  me  time  enough  to  test  it,  I  should  say." 

"Oh,  and  then — where  will  you  go?" 

"I  don't  know.  Wherever  the  firm  sends  me,  I  sup 
pose.  I'm  not  anxious  to  go  anywhere.  If  the  railroad 
people  lost  the  engines  in  transit  and  it  took  a  year  to 
find  them,  I  should  bear  up  under  it." 

"Really !  Why  ?  Don't  you  like  your  work,  Mr.  Clif 
ford?" 

"Like  it?  I'm  crazy  about  it.  I  wouldn't  do  anything 
else  for  any  amount  of  money.  I  didn't  mean  what  I 
said  exactly,  Miss  Barstow.  Of  course,  I  shouldn't  want 
the  engines  to  be  lost  and  I  do  mean  to  get  my  job  here 
finished  on  time,  but " 

"But  what?" 

"I'm  not  very  anxious  to  leave  Trumet,  that's  all." 

This  remark  seemed  to  put  a  stop  to  conversation  for 
a  moment.  When  Miss  Barstow  next  spoke  it  was  con 
cerning  a  different  subject.  They  had  reached  the  next 
hill  on  the  lower  road.  It  was  a  higher  hill  than 
"Knowles',"  and  from  its  top  there  was  an  expansive 
view  of  bay  and  shore,  stretching  for  miles  in  either  di 
rection.  Upon  the  water  side  of  the  road,  standing  in 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

a  good-sized  plot  of  ground,  was  an  old-fashioned,  ram 
bling  house,  much  out  of  repair.  It  had  been  in  its  day 
a  very  roomy,  comfortable  house,  and  the  possibilities 
for  comfort  were  in  and  about  it  even  yet ;  but  the  white 
wash  was  peeling  from  the  shingle^,  the  shingles  them 
selves,  some  of  them,  were  dropping  off,  here  and  there 
a  blind  hung  on  one  hinge,  and  the  dead  grass  and  weeds 
in  the  yard  were  a  foot  high.  The  house  looked  as  if  it 
had  been  shut  up  for  years,  as,  in  fact,  it  had.  But  now 
a  door  and  several  windows  were  open  and  smoke  was 
rising  from  the  kitchen  chimney. 

"It  will  seem  good  to  see  that  house  open,"  said  Mary 
Barstow.  "It  has  been  closed  ever  since  I  came  here  to 
Trumet  to  live.  When  I  was  a  little  girl  I  used  to  be 
frightened  to  go  by  it  at  night,  it  looked  so  deserted  and 
spooky.  But  as  I  grew  older  I  came  to  like  it,  rather. 
It  seems  so — so — what  shall  I  say? — homey,  or  as  if  it 
ought  to  be  made  a  home  again.  I  like  the  way  it  is 
spread  out,  long  and  low,  you  know ;  and  the  way  all  the 
ells  and  extensions  and  barns  and  henhouses  cuddle  up 
to  it.  I  am  ever  so  glad  it  is  going  to  be  opened  and 
lived  in.  I  only  hope  the  new  owner  won't  improve  it 
too  much,  not  enough  to  spoil  it,  anyway/* 

"Who  is  the  new  owner?"  asked  Clifford. 

"His  name  is  Burgess ;  and  his  Christian  name  is  as 
queer  as — well,  almost  as  queer  as  my  stepfather's.  It  is 
'Obadiah' — Obadiah  Burgess.  Haven't  you  heard  of  his 
falling  heir  to  the  old  Badscom  place  and  coming  here  to 
live?" 

Irving  nodded.  "Yes,"  he  said,  "I  have.  I  heard 
something  about  it,  although  I  paid  little  attention.  But 

15 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

I  think  I  saw  Mr.  Burgess.  A  little  chap,  isn't  he ;  with 
a  sort  of  round,  red,  moony  face  and  grayish  hair?" 

"That  is  Mr.  Burgess.  Did  you  meet  him  ?  He  came 
only  yesterday." 

"No,  I  didn't  meet  Aim.  I  saw  him  on  the  street  just 
now.  At  least  Mr.  Peleg  Bearse  said  it  was  he.  He  was 
with  Mr.  Griggs — your  father/' 

Again  there  was  a  momentary  silence.  It  seemed  to 
Clifford  as  if  his  companion  looked  troubled;  but  she 
said:  "Yes,  I  believe  Mr.  Griggs  is  attending  to  some 
business  matters  for  him.  Isn't  this  a  wonderful  after 
noon  ?  See  how  clear  everything  is.  See  that  schooner's 
sails,  so  clean-cut  against  the  sky,  and  yet  her  hull  is 
below  the  horizon." 

But  Irving  Clifford  did  not  mean  to  be  sidetracked  by 
the  clearness  of  the  atmosphere  or  the  beauty  of  the 
view.  The  dressmaker's  house,  Miss  Barstow's  destina 
tion,  was  not  so  far  ahead — they  had  passed  the  corner 
and  were  now  on  the  main  road — and  there  was  some 
thing  he  wished  to  say  before  they  reached  there.  So  he 
summoned  his  courage  and  began : 

"Miss  Barstow,"  he  said,  "I  hope  you'll  forgive  me 
for  saying  this,  but  it  has  troubled  me  a  little,  and  I 
determined  to  ask  you  about  it.  It  may  be  my  fancy, 
but  it  has  seemed  to  me  of  late  that  your  father  doesn't 
— doesn't — well,  as  if  he  had  a  sort  of  prejudice  against 
me.  Almost  as  if  he  disliked  me.  Have  you  noticed  it?" 

For  just  a  moment  she  hesitated.  Then  she  said:  "I 
am  not  sure  that  I  know  what  you  mean,  Mr.  Clifford. 
I  didn't  think  you  and  my — father  were  well  acquainted/' 

"Why,  we're  not,  you  know,  not  very  well  acquainted. 

16 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

I — well,  to  be  frank,  he  doesn't  seem  to  care  for  my  ac 
quaintance.  On  the  last  two  or  three  occasions  when  we 
have  met  he  has  scarcely  spoken  to  me.  I  couldn't  im 
agine  how  I  had  offended  him.  I  can't  yet  Can  you, 
Miss  Barstow?" 

Again  she  was  silent  for  a  moment;  then  she  said: 

"Mr.  Griggs  is  somewhat  peculiar,  as  perhaps  you  have 
noticed — or  heard." 

He  had  heard  at  least  that.  In  fact,  of  all  the  stories 
of  Balaam  Griggs,  his  characteristics,  manners  and  meth 
ods  he  had  heard  since  he  came  to  Trumet,  not  one  was 
to  Balaam's  credit.  And  he  knew  she  must,  to  some  ex 
tent,  be  aware  of  this.  Yet  he  tried  to  make  his  answer 
as  diplomatic  as  possible. 

"I  have  heard,"  he  said,  "that  he  was — er — eccentric." 

"Yes,  he  is.  He  has  few  friends ;  says  he  doesn't  care 
for  them." 

"Humph !  that's  odd ;  I'm  sorry." 

"Why?" 

"Why?" 

"Yes,  why?    Do  you  wish  to  become  a  friend  of  his?" 

This  was  a  direct  question,  certainly.  Irving  Clifford 
was  surprised  and  rather  embarrassed.  But  he  would 
not  help  smiling. 

"Well,"  he  answered,  "since  you  ask  me  so  very 
plainly,  I  don't  know  that  I  do,  particularly.  If  Mr. 
Griggs  wishes  to  dodge  my  acquaintance  he  has  that 
privilege,  I  suppose.  But  I  do  value  your  friendship, 
Miss  Barstow,  and  because  I  do  and  hope  that  it  may 
continue  I  shall  be  sorry  if  your  father's  eccentricity 
takes  the  form  of  dislike  to  me." 

17 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

They  had  reached  the  whitewashed  fence,  the  gate  of 
which  supported  the  sign:  "Miss  Caroline  Cahoon, 
Modiste  and  Dressmaker.  Plain  and  Fancy  Sewing 
Done  Here  or  Out  by  the  Day."  Mary  paused,  her  hand 
on  the  gate.  She  seemed  to  be  considering,  to  be  mak 
ing  up  her  mind.  When  she  spoke  it  was  evident  that 
that  mind  was  made  up. 

"Mr.  Clifford,"  she  said,  quietly,  "you  know,  of  course, 
that  Mr.  Griggs  is  not  my  own  father,  my  real  father." 

"Yes ;  yes,  I  knew  that  he  was  your  stepfather.  I  had 
been  told  so." 

"He  is.  My  own  father  died  when  I  was  a  little  girl. 
My  mother  married  Mr.  Griggs  while  I  was  away  at 
school,  and  I  remained  at  that  school  until  just  before 
her  death,  four  years  ago.  During  her  last  illness  I 
came  here  to  her  home — Mr.  Griggs'  home — and  I  have 
been  here  ever  since.  My  mother  asked  me  to  stay  here 
with  him,  for  a  time  at  least,  and  I  have  done  as  she 
asked. 

"I  am  telling  you  this,"  she  added,  "because  I  want 
to  make  plain  to — to  all  my  friends  that  my  stepfather's 
personal  prejudices  do  not  influence  me  in  any  way, 
either  in  my  feelings  or  my  acts.  Mother  asked  me  to 
stay  here  with  him  and  make  him  a  home  as  long  as  I 
felt  it  right  to  do  so.  That  I  have  done  and  am  doing, 
but  my  friendships  are  my  own.  Good  afternoon,  Mr. 
Clifford.  I  have  enjoyed  the  walk  ever  so  much." 

She  entered  the  dressmaker's  yard.  Irving  Clifford 
resumed  his  walk,  his  head  high  and  his  spirits  equally 
so.  What  did  he  care  for  the  eccentricities  or  preju 
dices  of  Balaam  Griggs?  If  he  had  met  the  dealer  in 

18 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

real  estate,  insurance  and  mortgages  just  then  he  would 
have  felt  like  snapping  his  fingers  in  the  latter's  face. 

So  he  walked  on,  increasing  his  pace  and  whistling 
cheerfully.  As  he  left  Trumet  behind  him  the  houses 
were  more  widely  scattered  and  there  were  stretches  of 
woods,  pines  and  scrub  oaks.  The  road  became  more 
winding  and  crooked  and  the  hills  and  hollows  more  fre 
quent.  In  summer,  particularly  on  Saturday  or  Sunday, 
there  would  have  been  a  procession  of  automobiles  on 
that  road ;  now,  in  October,  there  were  very  few. 

He  had  covered  perhaps  two  of  the  three  miles  sepa 
rating  South  Trumet  from  its  parent  town  when  he 
heard  the  raucous  squawk  of  a  motor  horn.  The  sound 
seemed  to  come  from  beyond  the  summit  of  the  hill  on 
the  road  before  him.  The  hill  was  rather  high  and  long, 
for  a  Cape  Cod  specimen,  and  the  road,  curving  gently 
upward  to  its  top,  disappeared  behind  a  clump  of  sturdy 
old  pines,  their  foliage  feathery  and  green  against  the 
afternoon  sky.  At  the  foot  of  the  slope,  beside  and  to 
the  left  of  the  road  and  almost  opposite  where  Clifford 
was  walking  at  that  moment,  was  a  hollow  and  a  little 
pond,  the  latter  perhaps  fifty  yards  in  width.  Between 
the  road  and  the  pond  was  a  stretch  of  rickety  rail  fence. 

The  squawking  of  the  motor  horn  was  so  loud  and  in 
sistent  that  Clifford  looked  up  the  slope  with  some  inter 
est,  wondering  what  sort  of  vehicle  might  be  attached  to 
that  horn  and  why  its  progress  was  announced  with  such 
preliminary  trumpetings.  He  expected  to  see  at  least  a 
seven-passenger  limousine  shoot  from  behind  the  clump 
of  pines  and  descend  the  hill  at  a  speed  of  seventy  miles 
an  hour. 

19 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

But  the  car  which  did  appear  was  not  a  limousine.  It 
was  a  runabout  containing  a  single  passenger.  The  pas 
senger,  who  was  also  the  driver,  was  a  man,  and  he  was 
humped  over  the  steering  wheel,  his  elbows  well  out  and 
his  hat  on  the  back  of  his  head.  Clifford  had  little  time 
to  observe  what  the  man  looked  like;  his  attention  was 
centered  on  the  car  itself.  The  latter  was  small  and 
"tinny,"  also  it  glittered  in  the  sunshine  as  only  a  very 
new  car  can  glitter.  It  turned  the  corner  by  the  pines 
to  the  accompaniment  of  brazen  squawkings  and  came 
down  the  hill,  gathering  speed  as  it  came.  It  edged  over 
toward  the  right-hand  side  of  the  road  until  the  watcher 
at  the  foot  of  the  hill  feared  he  might  be  crowded  off  the 
highway  altogether.  Then  with  a  violent  jerk  it  shot 
diagonally  across  to  the  left,  where  in  turn  it  was  yanked 
from  the  very  edge  of  destruction  and  sent  to  the  right 
again. 

Clifford,  standing  in  the  middle  of  the  road  below,  was 
very  anxious  to  get  out  of  the  way  of  this  erratic 
equipage,  but  there  was  some  difficulty  in  knowing  which 
way  to  jump.  If  he  went  to  the  left,  the  car  was  just 
as  likely  to  go  there  too,  and  the  right  was  equally  dan 
gerous.  However,  a  sudden  swoop  of  the  approaching 
motor  to  the  right  decided  him,  and  to  the  left  he  sprang, 
shouting  a  warning  as  he  did  so. 

The  shout  reached  the  ears  of  the  driver,  apparently, 
for  he  looked  up  from  the  macadam  directly  at  the  end 
of  the  radiator,  the  spot  upon  which  his  gaze  had  hith 
erto  been  fixed  as  if  glued,  and  saw  the  fellow  human 
in  his  path.  Then  he,  too,  shouted,  or  roared,  or  bel 
lowed,  and,  twisting  his  body  to  one  side,  turned  the 

20 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

steering  wheel  with  it.  The  runabout  swerved  sharply 
to  the  left,  Clifford  leaping  out  of  its  way  just  in  time, 
crossed  the  road,  smashed  headlong  through  the  rickety 
rail  fence  and  splashed  hub  deep  into  the  little  pond, 
where  it  stopped  short. 

Irving,  as  soon  as  his  bewildered  senses  were  able  to 
grasp  the  situation  at  all,  jumped  over  the  splintered 
ruins  of  the  fence  and  ran  to  the  rescue.  The  auto,  sur 
rounded  by  agitated  rings  of  mud  and  water,  seemed  to 
be  safe  enough.  At  any  rate,  it  was  standing  on  its 
four  wheels.  As  for  its  driver,  he,  too,  appeared  to  be 
safe  and  sound.  Clifford,  who  unheedingly  had  run 
ankle  deep  into  the  mud  and  water  himself,  voiced  his 
anxiety  in  a  hail : 

"Are  you  hurt?"  he  asked. 

The  man  in  the  auto  turned  a  red  and  somewhat  dazed 
face  in  his  direction.  It  was  a  big  face,  for  he  was  a 
big  man,  and  there  were  strands  of  iron-gray  hair  tum 
bled  across  the  forehead,  and  a  gray-sprinkled,  pointed 
chin  beard  and  mustache.  It  was  a  strong  face,  one 
which  looked  as  if  it  had  faced  many  climates,  many 
weathers  and  many  different  kinds  of  human  beings. 
Clifford,  of  course,  noted  all  this  later;  just  then  he  no 
ticed  very  little  except  that  the  man  himself  appeared  to 
be  uninjured. 

"Eh?"  gasped  the  stranger  in  the  auto. 

"I  say,  are  you  hurt?"  repeated  Irving. 

"Eh?  Hurt?  No,  I  guess  I  ain't,  but  I  ain't  sartin. 
I  wouldn't  swear  to  nothin'  definite  just  this  minute. 
You're  the  feller  that  was  there  in  the  road  off  my  bows, 
v/an't  you?  Are  you  hurt?" 

21 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

"Not  a  bit.  I'm  sorry  I  startled  you.  I  yelled  and 
tried  to  get  out  of  your  way,  but " 

'That's  all  right;  that's  all  right."  He  looked  Mr. 
Clifford  over  and  a  smile  twitched  the  corner  of  his  lip. 
"As  for  gettin'  out  of  my  way,"  he  added,  "your  inten 
tions  was  all  right,  son,  but  your  judgment  was  bad. 
You'd  ought  to  have  stayed  right  in  the  middle  of  the 
channel.  I've  hit  'most  everywhere  since  I  left  Province- 
town  in  this  dratted  thing,  but  I  ain't  hit  the  middle  of 
the  road  yet.  Where  am  I,  anyhow?" 

He  peered  over  the  side  of  the  car.  Then  he  shook 
his  head. 

"Water,  ain't  it?"  he  demanded.  "Blessed  if  it  ain't 
water !  Tut !  tut !  Son,  is  there  any  other  pond  or  water 
hole  within  two  mile  of  here?" 

Clifford  laughed;  he  could  not  help  it.  "So  far  as  I 
know  this  is  the  only  one,"  he  said. 

"/  bet  you !  And  I  got  into  it !  If  there's  any  water, 
salt  or  fresh,  on  top  of  this  earth  anywhere  you  can 
'most  generally  cal'late  on  my  gettin'  in  it — or  on  it. 
'Twas  some  prophet  in  our  family  that  named  me  Noah. 
.  .  .  Well,  son,"  he  added,  after  another  look  over  the 
side  of  the  auto,  "what  do  you  think?  Is  the  Ark 
stranded  for  keeps  here  on  Ararat;  or  can  I  kedge 
her  off?" 


CHAPTER   II 

THE  term  "kedge  her  off"  did  not  convey  a  great 
deal  of  meaning  to  Irving  Clifford's  mind,  but 
he  had  spent  sufficient  time  in  Captain  Zeke  Penni- 
man's  society  to  realize  that  nautical  phraseology  con 
tained  many  terms  non-understandable  to  a  landsman. 
And  it  was,  of  course,  plain  that  the  man  in  the  runabout 
was,  or  had  been,  a  sailor.  "Sea  captain,  active  or  re 
tired,"  was  written  all  over  him.  So  Mr.  Clifford  took  a 
chance. 

"I  think  we  can  get  the  car  out/'  he  said.  "We  must 
be  prompt,  that's  all,  before  it  settles  into  the  mud.  You 
sit  where  you  are,  sir,  and  I'll  wade  in  and  see  how  much 
damage  is  done." 

He  stepped  back  to  dry  land  and  bent  to  the  laces  of 
his  dripping  shoes.  The  man  in  the  car  roared  a  protest. 

"You  shan't  do  nothin'  of  the  kind,"  he  declared. 
"You  stay  ashore  there  and  keep  dry.  You've  had 
enough  trouble  on  account  of  me,  as  'tis.  I  pretty  nigh 
run  over  you ;  'tain't  likely  I'm  goin'  to  drown  you,  is  it? 
You  stay  right  there,  I  tell  you,  and  keep  your  feet  dry." 

Clifford  laughingly  shook  his  head.  "I  couldn't  keep 
them  dry  if  I  wanted  to/'  he  replied.  "My  shoes  and 

23 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

stockings  are  soaked  through  already.  You  sit  there  and 
I'll —  Oh,  great  Scott !  what  did  you  do  that  for  ?" 

The  question  was  uttered  in  a  tone  of  protest  and 
amazement.  The  man  had  quietly  opened  the  car  door, 
stepped  out,  and  was  now  standing  in  the  pond,  the 
muddy  water  reaching  his  knees. 

"What' did  you  do  that  for?"  repeated  Clifford. 

"Well,  you  said  we'd  have  to  be  prompt,  or  she'd  set 
tle.  This  was  the  promptest  way  to  be  prompt  I  could 
think  of.  She  wouldn't  have  stopped  settlin'  any  quicker 
with  my  two  hundred  and  fifty  pounds  roostin'  on  deck. 
Besides,  I  wan't  any  good  there ;  I  may  possibly  be  some 
here." 

"But  why  in  the  world  didn't  you  take  off  your  shoes 
and  stockings?" 

"Son,  when  you  get  to  my  age  and  tonnage  you'll 
realize  that,  when  it  comes  to  makin'  a  choice  between 
gettin'  wet  and  takin'  off  your  shoes  and  socks  in  a 
two  by  four  space  like  the  cockpit  of  that  automobile, 
you'll  get  'em  wet  every  time.  There!  now  we're  both 
in  the  briny  deep,  as  the  feller  said.  What  do  you  think 
of  her?  Know  anything  about  that  kind  of  craft,  do 
you?" 

Clifford  had  waded  in  and  was  standing  beside  him. 
"Yes,"  he  answered.  "A  little.  But  the  first  thing  is 
to  see  if  we  can  push  it  back  out  of  this  mud  hole.  If 
we  can't  we  shall  have  to  hunt  up  some  one  with  a 
horse;  and  there  isn't  a  house,  as  far  as  I  know,  for  a 
mile  either  way." 

"To  say  nothin'  of  a  barn,  eh?  I  cal'late  we  can  shove 
her,  if  she  ain't  too  deep  in.  Don't  weigh  much  more'n 

24 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

a  termatter  can,  she  don't.  That's  what  I  told  the  feller 
I  bought  her  of :  'If  she  springs  a  leak/  I  says,  'I  can 
put  her  in  my  pocket  and  take  her  down  to  the  tinsmith's 
to  be  soldered/  There!  now  I'll  shove  one  stern  wheel 
and  you  the  other.  Got  everything  fixed,  have  you  ?  Say 
when  you're  mad !  Now !  Heave  and  she  goes !" 

Clifford  having  adjusted  the  clutch  as  best  he  could, 
they  "heaved"  together,  and  the  light  little  car  pulled  out 
of  the  mud  and  bumped  and  wallowed  and  splashed  to 
the  shore.  They  ran  it  back  until  the  forward  wheels 
were  clear  of  the  water.  Then  they  stopped  for  breath. 

"Whew !"  panted  the  big  man,  rubbing  his  coat  sleeve 
across  his  forehead.  "Say,  I'm  glad  the  tinsmith  ain't 
hollerin'  for  her  now.  Perhaps  he  is,  though;  him  or 
the  undertaker.  Land  knows  how  her  engines  are  after 
that  souse.  Better  take  off  the  hatches  and  have  a  look, 
hadn't  we?  Not  that  I'd  know  any  more  after  I  had 
looked;  but  you  said  you  would  know,  eh,  Mister?" 

"Yes.  I  am  an  engineer.  Looking  after  engines  of 
various  sorts  is  my  business." 

"You  don't  say!  Well,  well!  Every  man  to  his  job, 
as  the  tipsy  feller  said  to  the  snake  charmer.  So  you're 
an  engineer,  eh?  Well,  son,  I  have  showed  a  little  mite 
of  judgment  in  this  fool  business,  after  all,  ain't  I?  I 
knew  who  not  to  run  over.  How  does  she  look?  Any 
chance  short  of  the  scrap  heap?" 

The  young  man  had  removed  the  hood  and  was  in 
specting  the  engine.  His  examination  was  brief  but 
thorough. 

"She  is  not  badly  hurt,"  he  said,  after  two  or  three 
minutes  of  testing  and  peering.  "That  is,  she  is  not  in- 

25 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

jured  seriously.  If  you  hadn't  gone  into  that  pond  quite 
so  far  she  wouldn't  have  been  hurt  at  all." 

"Sho,  sho !  And  I  was  thinkin'  'twas  lucky  I  hadn't 
gone  in  all  under.  She  is  hurt  some,  I  judge.  What's 
the  damage?" 

"Well,  that  cold  water  has  cracked  one  of  your  cylin 
ders." 

"The  devil !" 

"Oh,  that  isn't  such  a  dreadful  thing." 

"Ain't  it?  I  didn't  know.  I  just  said  'the  devil'  on 
the  chance.  Then  'tain't  very  bad,  eh  ?" 

"It's  bad  enough.  With  a  big  car  it  might  be  very 
bad ;  but  with  this  little  one,  of  this  particular  make,  you 
have  only  to  wire  the  Boston  agents,  and  new  parts  will 
be  here  in  a  day  or  so." 

"Humph !  A  day  or  so !  What'll  I  be  doin'  while  I'm 
waitin';  settin'  here  on  the  edge  of  this  pond  whistlin' 
for  hornpouts  to  swim  in  for  supper?" 

"Ha,  ha !  Not  unless  you  want  to.  I  think  I  can  get 
your  car  going  so  that  it  will  limp  on  three  cylinders  as 
far  as  South  Trtimet.  There's  a  good  garage  there 
where  you  can  leave  it  and  it  will  be  well  looked  after. 
I'll  go  with  you,  if  you  wish;  I  was  bound  there,  any 
way.  Unless,  of  course,  my  company  will  inconvenience 
you." 

"Humph!  Yes,  'twill  inconvenience  me  about  as 
much  as  a  square  meal  would  inconvenience  a  starvin' 
man.  I  don't  know  how  I'm  goin'  to  thank  you  for  all 
this,  Air.— Mr. " 

"Clifford  is  my  name,  Irving  Clifford." 

"Mine's  Newcomb — Noah  Newcomb.    Well,  Mr.  Clif- 

26 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

ford,  I  won't  waste  time  tellin'  you  I'm  pleased  to  meet 
you,  because  I  hope  you've  seen  enough  of  me  by  this 
time  to  give  me  credit  for  havin'  a  teaspoonful  of  com 
mon  sense.  In  spite  of  the  way  I  handled  that  auto 
mobile  just  now,  I  give  you  my  word  that  there's  times 
when  I'm  as  rational  as  other  folks.  I'm  mightily 
obliged  to  you,  Mr.  Clifford,  I  am  so.  Now  what's  the 
first  thing  you  want  me  to  do?  I  warn  you  right  now 
you'll  find  me  about  as  handy  at  this  job  as  a  clam  is  at 
climbin'  a  tree." 

Clifford,  who  was  finding  his  new  acquaintance  rather 
amusing,  replied  that  there  was  nothing  for  him  to  do 
at  the  moment.  "Just  sit  down  and  watch  me,  Mr. 
Newcomb,"  he  said.  "Or  should  I  say  'Captain  New- 
comb'?" 

The  big  man  grinned.  "Smell  the  tar  on  me  strong  as 
all  that,  can  you?"  he  inquired.  "Yes,  you  can  call  me 
'Cap'n,'  if  you  want  to.  Most  folks  do,  I  notice.  I  ain't 
done  much  seafarin'  for  quite  a  spell,  but  for  pretty  nigh 
twenty  years  at  a  stretch  I  got  my  livin'  on  salt  water. 
Last  part  of  it  I  commanded  one  of  the  Clay  Line  boats, 
runnin'  to  Porto  Rico." 

Clifford  was  interested  at  once.  "Porto  Rico?"  he  re 
peated.  "I  know  Porto  Rico  pretty  well,  myself.  I  was 
at  San  Juan  for  nearly  two  years  installing  the  engines 
and  setting  up  the  plant  of  a  big  sugar  company." 

"You  don't  say!  Why,  I  know  San  Juan  same  as  I 
know  Portland,  Maine,  and  Portland's  where  I've  been 
livin'  for  the  past  twelve  year  or  more,  ever  since  I  gave 
up  steamboatin'.  So  you've  been  to  Porto  Rico,  eh? 
Well,  well !  I  want  to  know !" 

3  27 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

There  was  little  doubt  that  he  did  want  to  know,  also 
that  he  intended  to  find  out.  While  the  young  man 
busied  himself  with  the  engine  of  the  automobile,  Cap 
tain  Newcomb,  hands  in  pockets  and  apparently  quite 
oblivious  of  the  fact  that  his  garments  from  the  knees 
down  were  soaked  through,  walked  up  and  down  asking 
questions.  Having  learned  that  Irving  Clifford  was  a 
mechanical  engineer,  that  his  home  was  in  Ohio,  that  he 
had  been  educated  at  Cornell,  and  that  his  reason  for 
being  on  Cape  Cod  was  the  installing  of  the  mechanical 
equipment  at  the  new  fish  freezing  and  storing-  plant  at 
Trumet,  the  captain  proceeded  to  impart  a  little  infor 
mation  about  himself. 

Irving  learned  that  his  companion  was  a  Cape  Codder 
by  birth,  having  been  born  in  that  very  town,  Trumet. 
That  he  left  school  and  went  to  sea  when  he  was  four 
teen.  That  his  sister,  whose  name,  it  appeared,  was  Dor 
cas,  and  who  married  a  man  named  Cornelius  Dilling- 
ham,  had  lived  at  Ostable  until  her  husband's  death, 
which  occurred  some  time  in  the  early  nineties. 

"I  used  to  come  down  and  visit  'em  every  once  in  a 
great  while  in  the  old  days,"  explained  Captain  Noah. 
"Used  to  call  Cape  Cod  my  home  then.  'Twas  as  much 
my  home  as  any  place.  Fellers  that  go  sailorin'  and 
steamboatin'  don't  have  any  home,  rightly  speakin',  and 
I  was  in  the  Pacific  trade  then,  mate  on  a  tramp  freighter. 
No,  I  never  went  square-riggin',  that  was  afore  my  time, 
but  I've  schoonered  and  steamboated  from  here  to  Glory 
and  back.  Well,  Dorcas  had  a  lot  of  trouble  here  on 
the  Cape ;  her  baby  died  and  then  Cornelius  got  drowned 
fishin'  on  the  shoals  down  by  Orham.  So  Dorcas  begged 

28 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

me  to  take  her  away  somewhere.  I  was  with  the  Clay 
Line  folks  then,  in  active  service,  so  I  took  her  to  Bos 
ton  and  she  lived  there  a  spell.  Then  they  made  me  port 
commander  of  their  line  of  steamers  runnin'  from  Port 
land  to  the  West  Indies,  and  my  sister  and  I  moved  to 
Portland  and  we  lived  there  ever  since." 

"Is  your  sister  there  now?"  asked  Clifford  absently. 
He  had  heard  very  little  of  his  new  acquaintance's  chat 
ter;  the  engine  was  occupying  most  of  his  attention. 

"She's  dead.  Died  last  spring;  pneumonia  'twas  that 
took  her  finally,  but  she'd  been  ailin'  a  long  spell.  After 
she  died  I  didn't  seem  to  care  to  hang  around  there  much 
longer,  so  I  settled  up  my  affairs  and  got  out.  I'd  laid 
by  a  little  bit,  had  some  lucky  investments  and  one  thing 
a'nother,  and  I  cal'late  I've  got  enough  to  last  me  through. 
I've  got  to  put  in  one  more  winter  at  Portland — I  prom 
ised  the  Clay  Line  folks  I'd  stay  with  'em  while  they 
broke  in  a  new  man — but  after  that — well,  after  that 
your  Uncle  Noah's  goin'  to  cruise  on  his  own  hook." 

"Where?" 

"Eh?" 

"Where  are  you  planning  to  cruise,  Captain  ?" 

"I  don't  know.  Anywhere  I  take  a  notion,  I  guess; 
so  long  as  it  don't  cost  too  much." 

"You  want  to  look  out  for  the  fences  and  ponds." 

"Eh?  Ho,  ho!  you're  right,  son,  so  I  do.  Well,  I 
presume  likely  you're  wonderin'  what  I  am  doin'  down 
in  these  latitudes  in  a  craft  I  don't  know  any  more  about 
than  I  do  that  one ;  eh  ?" 

"Well,  I— I  confess  I  did  wonder  a  little.  This  is  a 
brand-new  car,  isn't  it?" 

29 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

"It  was  yesterday  noon,  when  I  took  command  of  it. 
My  buyin'  that  auto  is  quite  a  yarn.  Show's  that  you 
can't  judge  much  by  the  looks  of  a  feller's  outside.  Any 
body  to  look  at  me  would  say  I  was  fairly  strong  and 
able,  wouldn't  they  ?" 

"They  certainly  would." 

"Yup.  Well,  they'd  make  a  mistake.  I'm  feeble  un 
der  the  hat  and  the  right  kind  of  man  can  toll  me  along 
with  soft  soap  until  I  do  most  anything.  Oh,  it's  so,  I've 
just  proved  it.  Four  days  ago  I  hadn't  any  more  idea 
of  buyin'  an  automobile  than  I  had  of  puttin'  pepper 
mint  and  molasses  on  my  head  and  sellin'  it  for  a  cough 
drop.  I  was  up  in  Boston  and  I  met  a  feller  I  used  to 
know,  a  feller  that  used  to  live  in  Portland.  I  asked  him 
where  he  was  livin'  now  and  he  told  me  down  to  Prov- 
incetown  here,  on  the  Cape.  Well,  of  course,  anything 
about  the  Cape  interests  me — I  was  a  boy  here  and  I 
always  did  like  it  better  than  anywhere  else  on  earth — 
and  we  talked  and  talked  a  long  spell.  He  was  goin' 
back  the  next  mornin'  on  the  boat  and  I'm  blessed  if, 
the  first  thing  I  knew,  he  hadn't  coaxed  me  into  promisin' 
to  go  along  with  him,  just  for  the  trip.  I  didn't  have 
anything  particular  to  do,  you  understand,  and  the  Old 
Harry  finds  some  mischief  still  for  lazy  folks  to  run 
afoul  of,  as  the  Good  Book  says. 

"So  down  to  Provincetown  I  went,  just  to  look  around. 
Stopped  at  this  feller's  house — his  name  was  Ryder,  by 
the  way — over  night.  Next  day  he  took  me  down  to 
his  place  of  business,  and  it  turned  out  he  was  in  the 
automobile  trade.  I  rode  around  town  some  with  him 
and  then  he  says,  'Noah,'  he  says,  'you  ought  to  have 

30 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

one  of  these  things/  'Yes/  I  says,  'I  know.  And  I 
ought  to  have  a  sealskin  sack  and  a  diamond  breast 
pin,  but  I  ain't  got  either  of  'em.'  'They  don't  cost  much 
of  anything/  says  he.  'A  car  like  this  now,  why,  they 
almost  give  it  away.'  'If  they  did  give  it  away/  I  told 
him,  '  'twouldn't  help  me  any ;  I  couldn't  pilot  it.'  'Yes, 
yes,  you  could/  he  says ;  'of  course  you  could.  It's  as 
simple  as  A  B  C.  Why,  just  you  look  here.'  I  looked 
and — Ho,  ho!  Well,  what's  the  use  of  pickin'  the 
funeral  all  to  pieces?  That  was  the  first  day;  the  next 
day  I  bought  the  car." 

"Well,  I  think  that  was  pretty  good  judgment,  Cap 
tain  Newcomb.  I'm  sure  you'll  get  a  lot  of  fun  out 
of  it." 

"Eh?  Land,  yes!  I've  got  a  shipload  of  fun  out  of 
it  already.  The  same  kind  of  fun  the  boy  had  that 
thumped  the  hornets'  nest  to  see  if  'twas  holler.  I  car- 
late  he  got  stung,  and  I  know  I  did.  And  yet,  by  time, 
I  did  learn  to  run  that  auto!  I  run  it  all  around  Prov- 
incetown  this  very  mornin'." 

"Well,  Captain,  if  you  can  do  that  you  should  be  able 
to  run  it  anywhere.  To  run  a  car  through  those  narrow 
streets  is  quite  a  feat." 

"Yes,  but  I  run  it  all  right.  Only,  son — and  here's 
where  the  difference  comes  in — that  Ryder  man  was 
right  at  my  elbow  all  the  time.  'Twas  the  difference 
between  goin'  into  a  strange  harbor  with  a  pilot  and 
goin'  in  without  one.  This  noon,  when  I  left  Province- 
town,  I  had  a  chip  on  each  shoulder.  I  was  perfectly 
sartin  I  could  navigate  that  automobile  to  China,  if  'twas 
necessary.  Well,  ho,  ho!  I  made  a  try  at  it.  If  that 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

pond  had  been  deep  enough  to  reach  clear  through,  I'd 
have  fetched  up  in  Hong  Kong,  I  shouldn't  .wonder." 

"What  was  the  matter?  What  set  you  to  going 
wrong?" 

"Everything,  son;  everything  and  every  livin'  critter  I 
met  on  the  road.  The  further  along  I  got  the  wider  I 
turned  out  to  pass.  When  I  was  runnin'  through  Prov- 
incetown  yesterday  I  wouldn't  have  given  a  cow  more 
than  six  inches  clearance  room.  This  afternoon  I  was 
liable  to  give  a  cat  half  a  mile.  I  did  think  all  the  nerves 
I  had  had  been  washed  out  of  me  by  Pacific  Ocean 
typhoons,  but  I  guess  I've  grown  a  new  set.  When  I  got 
to  navigatin'  this  last  string  of  hills  and  hollers  I  knew 
my  finish  was  just  ahead  somewheres.  I  had  so  many 
different  things  to  think  of,  that  was  the  trouble.  Ho, 
ho !  I  had  to  think  of  what  to  do  with  my  hands,  and 
with  my  feet,  and  with  my  eyes,  and  about  the  brake 
and  the  clutch  and  the  whistle  and — and — land  knows 
what  else.  And  then,  every  time  she'd  strike  a  steep 
place,  I'd  get  to  thinkin'  about  my  past  life,  because  the 
way  I  looked  at  it  I'd  soon  be  landed  where  I'd  have  to 
give  an  account  of  it.  Ho,  ho!  ...  Good  godfreys 
mighty!  What's  she  doin'  that  for?" 

Clifford  had  at  last  reached  the  point  where  he  was 
ready  to  attempt  starting  the  engine.  He  had  been 
"cranking"  for  a  minute  or  more.  Now  his  efforts  were 
rewarded  by  a  series  of  gasping  barks  and  explosions. 

"Fsst!  hoo-hoo!    Fsst!  hoo-hoo!" 

"Got  the  phthysic,  ain't  it?"  queried  the  car's  owner, 
anxiously.  "Sounds  like  somethin'  catchin'.  Liable  to 
do  that  long,  think?" 

32 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

"Until  we  get  to  the  garage,  I'm  afraid.  Jump  in, 
Captain,  and  we'll  see  how  she  goes." 

She  went,  but  that  was  all  that  might  be  truthfully 
said  concerning  her  progress.  She  crept  barking  and 
spitting  up  the  hills  and  spitting  and  barking  down  the 
slopes.  Clifford  had  taken  the  steering  wheel  and  Cap 
tain  Newcomb  sat  beside  him  on  the  seat.  After  a  few 
minutes  the  latter  spoke. 

"Would  it  be  doin'  anything  unsafe  or  sacrilegious," 
he  asked,  "to  let  you  and  me  change  places?  Don't 
think  Fm  altogether  loony,"  he  added,  apologetically. 
'The  only  thing  is  I — I  hate  to  give  up.  I  started  in 
to  learn  this  car  and  I  do  hate  to  have  the  thing  lick  me. 
I'm  goin'  to  run  her  afore  I  get  through  or  die  a-tryin'. 
Sounds  foolish,  don't  it,  for  a  grown  up  man  to  be  so 
sot  and  childish,  but  I  can't  help  it,  it's  the  way  I'm 
made.  Will  it  be  all  right  for  me  to  take  the  wheel 
now?" 

Irving  laughingly  assured  him  that  it  would  be  all 
right,  and  the  change  was  made.  From  that  moment 
until  they  reached  the  door  of  the  South  Trumet  garage 
conversation  was  dispensed  with.  Captain  Noah's  ener 
gies  were  otherwise  employed. 

The  garage  man  received  the  little  car  cheerfully  and 
philosophically,  as  garage  men  usually  welcome  the  crip 
pled  fish  which  come  to  their  net. 

"Well,  'tain't  so  bad  as  it  might  be,"  was  his  optimis 
tic  observation,  after  inspection  of  the  damage.  "Noth- 
in's  so  bad  but  wrhat  it  might  be  wuss.  We  mustn't  for 
get  that;  eh,  Mister?" 

Captain  Noah  regarded  him  with  eager  interest. 

33 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

"Thank  you,  Commodore,  thank  you,"  he  said  sol 
emnly.  "I'm  much  obliged  to  you  for  remindin'  me. 
'Nothings  so  bad  but  what  it  might  be  worse/  That's 
a  wonderful  comfort,  that  is.  That,  and  'Birds  of  a 
feather  gather  no  moss/  and  It's  an  ill  wind  that  blows 
nobody — blows  nobody's  whiskers/  or  whatever  'tis, 
that's  the  kind  of  talk  that  reconciles  us  to  everything, 
Commodore;  you're  dead  right.  Thanks.  I'll  do  as 
much  for  you  some  day.  Now  about  how  soon  might  I 
reasonably  expect  to  have  this  craft  back  again?" 

The  proprietor  of  the  garage  stared  at  his  customer 
as  if  he  had  strong  doubts  of  the  latter's  sanity.  The 
captain,  however,  was  so  mild  and  bland  that  the  bewil 
dered  business  man  decided  to  chance  a  reply. 

"If  we  have  luck,"  he  said,  "them  new  parts  ought  to 
be  down  here  tomorrow  night.  Then  you  can  have  her, 
maybe,  two  afternoons  after  that." 

"Um-m.  Yes,  yes.  Well,  I  tell  you,  Commodore,  you 
just  help  that  luck  along  all  you  can,  will  you?  Remem 
ber,  'A  burnt  child  dreads  the — er — pain-killer.'  I'll  be 
here  sharp  day  after  day  after  tomorrow  afternoon. 
Well,  son,"  turning  to  Clifford,  "what  do  you  say  ?  Shall 
we  be  cruisin'  along?" 

Irving  explained  that  his  errand  in  South  Trumet  had 
been  to  that  very  machine  shop  and  garage.  "It  will 
delay  me  only  a  minute,  however,  Captain  Newcomb," 
he  said.  The  captain  said  he  would  wait  and,  taking  his 
handbag  from  beneath  the  seat  of  ihe  runabout,  strolled 
outside,  where,  at  the  corner,  Clifford  found  him  soon 
afterward.  The  big  man  was  chuckling  quietly  to  him 
self. 

34 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

"I  cal'late,"  he  observed,  with  a  backward  jerk  of  his 
head,  "that  feller  in  there  thinks  I'm  all  ready  for  the 
asylum,  don't  he?" 

His  companion  laughed. 

"Well,"  he  replied,  "he  did  ask  me  how  long  you  had 
been  this  way." 

"Ho,  ho!  I  bet  you!  Well,  son,  I  don't  know  why 
'tis,  but  proverbs  and  sayin's  and  such  always  kind  of 
stir  me  up  the  wrong  way.  I  ask  that  chap  in  there 
how  bad  the  auto  is  hurt  and  he  looks  wise  as  a  cross 
between  King  Solomon  and  a  cage  full  of  owls,  and  tells 
me  not  to  forget  that  nothin's  so  bad  but  what  it  might 
be  worse !  Muttonhead !  However,  I  gave  him  one  or 
two  proverbs  of  my  own,  didn't  I  ?  Ho,  ho !  Well,  if 
he  thinks  I'm  crazy  now  he  wants  to  look  out  for  me 
when  I  come  back.  If  that  car  ain't  done  on  time  Til 
be  violent  .  .  .  and  in  the  meantime,  son,  is  there  a 
hotel  in  this  place?" 

Clifford  shook  his  head.  "No,"  he  said,  "there  isn't. 
But  there  is  one,  such  as  it  is,  at  Trumet,  and  that  is 
only  three  miles  away." 

"Um.  Such  as  it  is,  eh?  You  know  somethin'  about 
that  hotel,  I  take  it." 

"I  ought  to.    I  put  up  there  myself." 

"So?  Well,  you  look  pretty  toler'ble  husky.  I  cal' 
late  I  can  stand  it  for  a  couple  of  days,  anyhow.  Sup 
pose  likely  they'll  have  room  for  me?" 

"I'm  pretty  sure  they  will." 

"Good  enough.  Let's  heave  ahead  for  Trumet.  'Twill 
seem  like  real  old  times,  stoppin'  in  Trumet  will." 

The  young  engineer  had  used  so  much  time  in  adjust- 

35 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

ing  the  auto  after  its  bath  in  the  pond  and  in  getting  it 
to  the  garage  that  he  felt  obliged  to  give  up  his  contem 
plated  walk  home.  Moreover,  his  new  friend  was  not 
at  all  in  favor  of  walking.  "Iron's  cheaper'n  leather 
these  hard  times,"  was  the  way  he  put  it.  "No  use 
wearin'  out  our  own  shoes  when  we  can  coax  a  horse  to 
wear  out  his  for  us." 

They  were  not  obliged  to  "coax"  a  horse,  for  the 
owner  of  the  garage  agreed  to  drive  them  in  his  own 
car  to  Trumet  for  two  dollars.  As  they  entered  the  vil 
lage  Captain  Noah's  interest  grew  more  and  more  keen. 
The  town  hall  was  new  to  him,  so  was  the  grammar 
school,  but  the  Congregationalist  meeting-house  received 
the  greeting  of  an  old  friend.  The  Mansion  House  was 
new,  of  course,  having  been  built  within  the  past  ten 
years.  He  was  introduced  to  Mrs.  Hobbs  and  shown 
to  his  room  by  Ethelinda.  Afterward  he  sat  between 
Mr.  Clifford  and  Captain  Ezekiel  Penniman  at  the  sup 
per  table.  When  the  meal  was  over  he  confided  to  the 
former  that  he  had  "struck  another  old  acquaintance." 

"Captain  Penniman?"  asked  Clifford. 

"No,  no;  never  met  him  afore.  It's  that  apple  pie 
I'm  talkin'  about.  If  I  ain't  awful  mistaken  I  had  a 
slice  off  that  same  apple  pie  the  night  afore  I  left  my 
granddad's  house  in  this  town  and  run  away  to  sea. 
'Twas  one  of  the  things  made  me  run.  Course  it  may 
not  be  the  same  pie,"  he  added,  "but  if  'tain't  then  the 
children's  children  take  after  the  old  folks  amazin'.  No, 
I'll  gamble  it's  the  same  one;  the  crust  is  a  little  mite 
tougher,  but  age  would  account  for  that.  I'm  tougher'n 
I  was,  myself." 

36 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

He  asked  Irving  what  the  "main  excitement  of  the 
evenin' "  might  be  about  town. 

"Don't  want  to  risk  anything  too  wild-eyed  and  divil- 
ish,"  he  explained,  "but  I  should  like  to  do  somethin'  to 
make  me  forget  that  pie.  Is  there  anything  to  go  to? 
Any  'time'  at  the  town  hall  or  anything?" 

"No,  Captain,  I'm  afraid  not.  There  are  moving 
pictures  here  twice  a  week  now,  but  this  is  not  one  of 
the  nights.  The  mail  gets  in  about  eight  o'clock  and 
almost  every  one  goes  to  the  post  office.  If  your  system 
craves  excitement,  I  imagine  that  is  where  you  are  most 
likely  to  find  it.  It's  not  so  fevered  as  to  be  dangerous." 

"Well,  that's  a  comfort.  I  remember  'twan't  what 
you'd  call  delirious  in  the  old  days.  My,  my !  how  long 
ago  it  seems  since  I  lived  here.  I  cal'late  I  will  go  to 
the  post  office.  I  might  meet  somebody  there  I  remem 
ber,  though  that  ain't  hardly  likely.  Won't  come  along, 
will  you?" 

But  the  engineer  had  work  to  do  that  evening.  He 
therefore  excused  himself  and  went  to  his  room.  Cap 
tain  Newcomb  lit  a  cigar  and  strolled  slowly  toward  the 
post  office,  staring  about  him  as  he  walked  and  trying 
to  pick  out  places  or  buildings  which  he  remembered. 
But  it  was  too  dark  to  see  plainly,  and  his  attempts  at 
seeing  only  caused  him  to  walk  into  posts  or  off  the 
edge  of  the  sidewalk.  In  fact,  he  almost  collided  with 
a  pair  of  pedestrians  just  ahead  of  him,  a  couple  too 
deeply  absorbed  in  their  own  conversation  to  notice  his 
approach.  They  were  both  men,  and  all  the  captain 
noticed  concerning  them,  except  their  imminent  prox 
imity,  was  that  one  was  tall  and  the  other  short.  He 

37 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

pulled  up  just  in  time  to  avoid  bumping  into  the  taller 
one,  and  stepped  off  the  sidewalk  to  pass.  As  he  did  so 
he  heard  the  other,  the  short  man,  say : 

"Well,  I  don't  care,  you  know.  I — I — I  don't  care 
much.  A  dollar  or  so  more  or  less  d-d-don't  make  much 
difference.  If  you  say  it's  all  r-r-right,  I'd  just  as  soon 
go  ahead  and  b-b-buy  it." 

That  was  all  Captain  Noah  heard.  The  tall  man, 
suddenly  aware  of  the  stranger  at  his  elbow,  drew  aside 
and  pushed  his  companion  further  toward  the  fence  at 
the  inner  edge  of  the  walk.  The  captain  moved  on,  but, 
as  he  moved,  the  scrap  of  conversation  which  had 
reached  his  ears  kept  ringing  in  them  like  an  echo  from 
the  past.  Not  the  subject  matter,  not  what  had  been 
said,  but  the  voice  which  said  it.  That  voice,  its  high 
pitch  and  the  funny  little  stutter,  seemed  oddly  familiar. 
When  had  he  heard  that  voice,  or  one  very  much  like  it, 
before?  Sometime,  somewhere,  a  voice  like  that  had 
been  familiar  to  him ;  somewhere  he  had  known  some 
one  who  squeaked  and  stuttered  in  just  that  way.  Some 
one  he  had  once  known,  in  the  village  of  Trumet,  of 
course,  it  must  be,  but  who?  And  why  should  the  voice 
seem  so  very  familiar?  He  felt  as  if  he  must  have 
known  the  speaker  very  well  indeed. 


CHAPTER   III 

NOT  until  he  reached  the  lowest  step  of  the  post 
office  platform  did  the  solution  of  the  puzzle 
come  to  him,  and  then  he  smiled  disgustedly. 
The  solution  was  not  a  solution  at  all.  He  remembered 
now  who  squeaked  and  stuttered  in  just  that  way,  but 
the  person  who  did  so  had  never  lived  in  Trumet,  nor,  so 
far  as  he  knew,  had  ever  been  within  a  hundred  miles  of 
the  place.  The  similarity  of  voices  was  a  coincidence, 
that  was  all. 

However,  it  was  a  satisfaction  to  have  run  down  and 
located  the  memory,  the  fancied  echo  of  which  had  so 
tantalized  him,  and  Captain  Noah  entered  the  post  office 
with  the  feeling  of  contentment  possessed  by  one  who  has 
guessed  a  riddle.  He  glanced  about  at  the  faces  of  the 
crowd,  but,  if  there  were  any  there  whom  he  had  once 
known,  the  years  had  changed  them  beyond  his  recog 
nition.  And  no  one  appeared  to  recognize  him. 

The  mail  was  "in,"  but  it  was  not  yet  sorted.  Inter 
est  seemed  to  center  about  a  counter  at  the  rear  of  the 
office  where  the  evening  newspapers  had  just  been  put 
on  sale.  The  captain  bought  a  Boston  Herald  and,  with 
it  in  his  hand,  retired  to  a  corner  to  read.  There  was  a 

39 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

chair  in  that  corner  and,  for  a  wonder,  it  was  unoccu 
pied.  He  sat  down,  his  bulky  form  squeezed  between 
the  corner  of  the  shelf,  which  was  offered  the  public  as 
a  substitute  for  a  writing  desk,  and  a  peach  crate,  which 
did  duty  as  a  waste  basket.  There  he  unfolded  his  news 
paper  and  essayed  to  read. 

By  and  by  the  raising  of  the  postmaster's  little  win 
dow  made  evident  the  fact  that  the  mail  was  sorted. 
The  crowd  pushed  forward,  some  to  get  in  line  at  the 
window,  others  to  unlock  private  letter  boxes.  Captain 
Noah,  who,  naturally,  expected  no  letters,  remained 
where  he  was.  His  toes  were  trodden  upon  rather 
often,  and  his  nose  had  more  than  one  narrow  escape  as 
a  hurried  discarder  of  circular  or  paper  wrapper  took  a 
flying  shot  at  the  waste  basket.  But  the  captain  read 
on.  The  editorial  he  was  reading  flayed  the  Democratic 
party  in  a  thoroughly  satisfactory  way,  and  he  wished 
to  follow  the  process  to  its  tormenting  finish. 

But  the  cuticle  had  not  been  entirely  removed  when 
his  reading  was  interrupted.  Just  before  him  and  not 
much  higher  than  his  head,  as  he  sat  in  the  chair,  he 
heard  again  the  squeaky  voice  which  he  had  heard  on 
his  walk  to  the  office. 

"All  right,  Mr.  G-G-Griggs,"  it  stammered.  "I'll  wait 
right  here.  You  get  your  mail,  if  you  w-want  to.  I 
ain't  exp-p-pectin'  none." 

The  captain  looked  up.  As  he  did  so  the  man  who 
had  just  spoken  looked  down.  He  had  a  round,  cherubic 
little  face — he  was  a  little  man — with  a  tuft  of  gray 
beard  on  the  chin  and  a  clean-shaven  upper  lip.  His 
eyes  were  a  light,  watery  blue,  and  as  he  stared  down 

40 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

into  the  captain's  face  they  opened  wide  and  wider. 
Then  his  mouth  opened  also. 

"Wh-wh-wh — "  he  panted,  like  a  toy  engine  getting 
up  steam;  and  then  exploded  with  a  "Why!  Cap'n  Noah 
Newcomb !" 

Captain  Noah  threw  down  his  paper  and  rose  to  his 
feet.  He  towered  above  the  little  man  like  a  floating 
derrick  above  a  tug  boat.  His  big  hand  closed  over  the 
other's  small  one  and  swallowed  it  up. 

"I  declare  to  man!"  he  cried,  in  huge  astonishment. 
"Obadiah  Burgess !  Then  'twas  you  I  heard  when  I  was 
comin'  along  down.  What  in  the  world  are  you  doin* 
here  in  Trumet?" 

Mr.  Burgess  did  not  seem  to  grasp,  even  if  he  heard, 
the  question.  He  was  staring  up  into  the  captain's  face 
with  an  expression  of  huge  astoniskment  coupled  with 
delighted  reverence. 

"Cap'n  Noah  Newcomb !"  he  repeated.  "Cap'n  Noah ! 
Well,  I  snum!  And  I  don't  know's  I  ever  expected  to 
see  you  again.  I'm  awful  glad,  I  am  so !" 

"Much  obliged,  Obe.  I'm  glad,  too.  I  don't  know's 
I  never  expected  to  see  you  again,  but  I  sartinly  never 
expected  to  see  you  here.  When  I  heard  that  voice  out 
yonder  just  now,  thinks  I :  'That  sounds  natural,  that 
voice  does/  And  then  afterwards  I  remembered  'twas 
your  voice  it  sounded  like.  But  here  in  Trumet!  You 
don't  live  here,  do  you?" 

"No,  sir,  I  don't.  That  is,  I  do.  Anyhow,  I  ain't; 
but  I  mean  I'm  g-g-goin'  to." 

Captain  Noah  shook  his  head.  "You  don't  and  you 
do  and  you  ain't  but  you're  goin'  to.  Little  mite  foggy, 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

that  is,  ain't  it,  Obe?  Cal'late  I'll  have  to  have  a  chart 
if  I'm  goin'  to  navigate  through  that.  Do  you  mean  you 
haven't  been  livin'  here,  but  you're  goin'  to  now?" 

"Th-th-that's  it,  sir.  You  know  about  my  gettin'  the 
place  and  the  money,  don't  you?  About  Aunt  Sarah's 
willin'  'em  to  me,  sir?" 

"Never  mind  the  'sir/  Obadiah.  We  ain't  on  board 
the  old  Flyaway  now.  Goodness  gracious,  how  long 
ago  that  seems — and  is!  So  somebody's  willed  you  a 
place  and  money,  eh?" 

''Yes,  sir.  Yes,  Cap'n.  I  thought  likely  you'd  heard 
of  it.  'Twas  put  in  the  newspapers." 

The  captain  repressed  a  smile.  Mr.  Burgess'  pride  in 
the  fact  that  the  news  of  his  good  fortune  had  been 
"put  in  the  newspapers"  was  so  very  evident. 

"I  must  have  missed  the  paper  that  day,  Obe,"  he 
said.  "But  tell  me  about  it.  How  much  was  it?  Who 
was  your  Aunt  Sarah?  How  did  you  come  to  be  here 
in  Trumet?  Is  the  place  you're  talkin'  about  here?" 

"Yes,  sir — yes,  Cap'n,  I  mean/' 

"Call  me  Noah.    Never  mind  the  handles." 

"All  r-r-right,  sir — Cap'n — Noah,  I  mean.  Yes,  the 
place  is  here.  You  see,  Aunt  Sarah,  she " 

"Wait  a  minute,  Obe.  Heave  to.  This  ain't  a  very 
good  place  for  us  to  talk,  is  it?  Too  much  competition. 
Come  on  round  to  my  room  at  the  hotel.  We  can  talk 
there  in  comfort.  Come  ahead." 

But  Mr.  Burgess  hung  back. 

"I  can't,  Cap'n  Noah,"  he  said.  "I  forgot.  Mr. 
Griggs  is  here  w-with  me.  He's  round  here  some- 
wheres.  Oh,  here  he  is !  Mr.  Griggs !" 

42 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

The  captain  turned  and  looked  over  his  shoulder.  A 
tall,  thin  man  was  standing  in  the  corner  by  the  chair 
he  had  just  vacated,  reading  a  letter.  He  was  a  long- 
legged,  stoop-shouldered  individual,  whose  sharp-fea 
tured  face  was  sparsely  decorated  with  a  scattering  pair 
of  sidewhiskers,  and  whose  long  nose  supported  a  pair 
of  spectacles  worn  not  more  than  half  an  inch  from  the 
tip.  The  expression  on  the  sharp-featured  face  was  not 
at  the  moment  a  pleasant  one.  Something  in  the  letter 
seemed  to  annoy  its  reader.  As  Captain  Newcomb 
looked  at  him  he  tore  the  letter  into  strips  and  dashed 
the  pieces  savagely  in  the  direction  of  the  waste  basket. 

"Mr.  Griggs !"  called  Mr.  Burgess  once  more. 

The  tall  man  turned,  looked  over  the  spectacles,  and, 
seeing  who  had  called,  nodded  and  smiled. 

"I'm  a-comin',  Mr.  Burgess,"  he  said.  "Shan't  keep 
you  waitin*  another  minute.  Had  a  little  mail  to  look 
over,  that's  all." 

"Mr.  Griggs,"  said  Mr.  Burgess,  excitedly,  "I  want 
to  make  you  known  to  Cap'n  Noah  Newcomb,  of — of — 
Where  are  you  livin'  now,  Cap'n  ?" 

"Portland  was  my  last  home  port,  Obadiah." 

"Yes,  yes.  Portland,  Maine.  I've  been  there.  Cap'n 
Newcomb  used  to  be  my  skipper  when  I  use  to  go  sea- 
cookin'.  I  went  many  as  seven  v'yages  with  him,  didn't 
I,  Cap'n?  And  I  cooked  to  s-s-suit  you,  if  I  do  say  it; 
eh,  Cap'n  Noah  ?" 

"You  sartinly  did,  Obe,"  agreed  the  captain,  cheer 
fully.  "And  this  is  Mr.  Griggs,  I  take  it." 

"Yes,  sir;  yes,  Noah,  I  mean.  Mr.  Ba-Ba-Bub-Bub- 
Bub " 

4  43 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

"Balaam,"  put  in  Mr.  Griggs  himself.  "Balaam 
Griggs,  my  name  is.  It's  a  kind  of  hard  name  to  say. 
Pleased  to  make  your  acquaintance,  Cap'n  Newcomb. 
Any  friend  of  Mr.  Burgess'  is  a  friend  of  mine,  right 
off." 

"That's  good."  Captain  Noah  and  Mr.  Griggs  shook 
hands.  "And  you're  another  old  chum  of  Obadiah's,  I 
judge,  Mr.  Griggs." 

Mr.  Griggs  seemed  a  little  disconcerted,  but  he  rallied 
promptly.  "No,  not  that — not  exactly  an  old  one.  Hey, 
Mr.  Burgess?  He!  He!  But  I  hope  him  and  I  are 
goin'  to  be  chums,  as  you  call  it.  If  we  ain't  'twon't  be 
my  fault." 

"Mr.  Griggs  has  been  awful  generous  and  obligin'  since 
I  got  here,"  put  in  Obadiah.  "Yes,  even  afore  I  come. 
Why,  I  d-d-don't  know  how  I'd  got  along  with  all  there 
was  to  bu-bu-buy  and  hire  around  that  new  house  of 
mine  if  it  hadn't  been  for  him.  No,  sir-ee,  I  don't!" 

Captain  Noah  gave  Mr.  Griggs  an  appraising  glance. 
He  decided  that  the  thin  man's  looks  must  belie  him. 
There  \vere,  certainly,  no  exterior  indications  of  either 
the  obliging  nature  or  the  generosity. 

"You  in  business  here,  Mr.  Griggs  ?"  he  asked. 

Balaam  nodded  and  fumbled  in  his  vest  pocket,  pro 
ducing  a  battered  memorandum  book,  from  between  the 
pages  of  which  he  took  a  printed  card. 

"Real  Estate  and  Insurance,  etcetery  and  so  on,"  he 
said,  handing  the  captain  the  card.  "Wasn't  thinkin'  of 
buyin'  and  settlin'  amongst  us,  was  you,  Cap'n  New- 
comb?  You  might  do  worse.  Trumet's  a  growin' 
town." 

44 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

The  captain  shook  his  head.  "No,"  he  said,  "not  this 
minute.  Just  now  I'm  mighty  interested  to  find  out  all 
about  Obe  here  and  his  good  luck.  I  judge  likely  there's 
quite  a  yarn  and  I  want  to  hear  it.  Can't  you  come  round 
to  the  hotel  now,  Obadiah?" 

Obadiah  hesitated.  Mr.  Griggs  looked  doubtful. 
"Course  I  wouldn't  interfere  with  your  plans  for  nothin', 
Mr.  Burgess,"  he  said ;  "but  if  you  was  cal'latin'  to  look 
over  that  bedroom  set,  tonight  would  be  an  awful  good 
time  to  do  it.  I  told  John  we'd  most  likely  be  down 
this  evenin',  so  he'll  probably  wait  in  for  us.  However, 
don't  let  nothin'  I  do  put  you  out.  No,  no." 

Mr.  Burgess  looked  troubled.  "I'd  like  awful  well  to 
come  round  and  see  you,  Cap'n  Noah,"  he  said.  "You 
and  me  have  got  a  lot  t-t-to  t-t-talk  over,  all  these  years. 
But,  you  see,  Mr.  Griggs  here  is  helpin'  me  buy  some 
furniture  for  the  house,  and — and  we've  got  an  appoint 
ment,  kind  of.  How  long  you  goin'  to  s-stay,  Cap'n?" 

"Couple  of  days,  I  guess.  That's  all  right,  Obe,  come 
and  see  me  tomorrow.  No,  hold  on!  I'll  come  and  call 
on  you.  Give  me  a  chance  to  see  this  property  of  yours 
as  well  as  yourself.  On  the  lower  road,  you  say?  All 
right,  I'll  find  it.  Be  down  pretty  soon  after  breakfast. 
Good  night,  Obe.  Good  night,  Mr. — Mr. — Briggs — no, 
Griggs." 

He  glanced  at  the  Griggs  business  card.  "Balaam," 
he  read.  "Say,  that's  a  good  old  Scriptur'  name,  ain't  it? 
We're  a  kind  of  Scriptural  bunch,  come  to  think  of  it. 
Obadiah — and  Noah — and  Balaam  !  Ho,  ho,  ho !" 

His  laugh  caused  the  postmaster  to  look  out  of  his 
little  window. 

45 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

"Obadiah  and  Noah  and  Balaam,"  repeated  the  cap 
tain.  "That's  Old  Testament  for  you!  Ho,  ho!  You'd 
have  to  hunt  some  ways  to  get  a  fourth  name  to  match 
up  with  them ;  eh  ?  Ho,  ho !  Well,  good  night,  good 
night.  See  you  tomorrow,  Obe.  You,  too,  maybe,  Mr. 
Griggs.  Good  night." 

After  they  had  gone  Captain  Noah  turned  back  to 
the  corner,  picked  up  the  Herald  from  the  top  of  the 
waste  basket  where  he  had  thrown  it  when  he  rose  to 
greet  Mr.  Burgess,  crumpled  it  up,  stuffed  it  into  his 
pocket  and  walked  back  to  the  hotel. 

In  his  room  he  took  off  his  coat,  vest  and  shoes,  lit 
a  fresh  cigar  and  settled  back  in  a  rocking  chair  to  finish 
the  editorial.  As  he  unfolded  the  Herald  a  piece  of 
paper  fluttered  to  the  floor.  He  stooped  and  picked  it  up. 

It  was  an  oblong  strip  of  cheap  note  paper,  evidently 
torn,  from  the  bottom  of  a  letter.  There  was  writing 
upon  it.  Scarcely  realizing  what  he  did  the  captain  read 
these  words: 

sending  you  every  cent  ju 

omptly  as  ever  I  can.     For 

d's  sake  remember  how  hard  it 

n't  put  Joash,  poor  boy,  in  states  prison 

Captain  Noah  turned  the  bit  of  paper  over.  The  other 
side  was  blank.  He  wondered  where  in  the  world  it 
had  come  from.  Then  he  remembered  that  his  news 
paper  had  lain  across  the  top  of  the  post  office  waste- 
paper  basket  and,  doubtless,  someone  had  torn  up  the 
letter  of  which  this  was  a  part  and  tossed  the  frag 
ments,  as  he  or  she  supposed,  into  the  basket,  but  really 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

on  the  paper.  When  he  picked  up  his  Herald  he  picked 
up  the  fragment  with  it. 

He  was  about  to  throw  it  down  again  when  the  name 
"Joash"  caught  his  eye.  He  laughed  aloud.  His  re 
mark  concerning  Old  Testament  names  had  been  to  the 
effect  that  one  would  have  to  hunt  some  to  find  a  fourth 
name  to  compare  with  "Obadiah"  and  "Noah"  and 
"Balaam."  Now,  without  hunting  at  all,  here  was  a  still 
more  odd  name  brought  to  his  attention  within  the  half 
hour. 

"Joash!"  He  repeated  it  aloud.  Then  he  laughed 
uproariously  and,  going  over  to  the  hook  upon  which  he 
had  hung  his  coat,  took  his  pocketbook  from  the  inside 
pocket  and  put  the  bit  of  note  paper  inside.  The  name 
"tickled"  him  immensely.  He  had  never  heard  it  be 
fore.  He  knew  where,  in  the  Bible,  to  look  for  "Noah" 
and  for  "Balaam" ;  he  would  not  have  dispaired  of  find 
ing  "Obadiah."  But  where  to  find  "Joash"  he  had  not 
the  slightest  idea.  But,  as  this  was  New  England,  and 
Cape  Cod  in  particular,  he  would  have  been  willing  to 
bet  that  "Joash"  was  a  Scriptural  name.  He  meant  to 
"stump"  the  minister  with  it,  after  his  return  to  Port 
land.  Whatever  else  was  written  upon  that  bit  of  paper 
he  had  forgotten  already,  but  that  name  he  did  not 
intend  to  forget. 

"Joash!    Ho,  ho!" 

So  he  put  the  piece  of  paper  in  his  pocketbook  as  a 
reminder.  And,  therefore,  having  shifted  responsibility 
from  his  memory  to  his  pocket,  he,  naturally,  proceeded 
to  forget  all  about  both  paper  and  name. 


CHAPTER   IV 

CAPTAIN  NOAH  had  hoped  to  meet  his  new  ac 
quaintance,  Irving  Clifford,  at  the  breakfast  table 
and  ask  a  few  questions  concerning  Balaam 
Griggs.  But  when  he  entered  the  dining  room  the  next 
morning  he  found  that  Mr.  Clifford  had  already  break 
fasted  and  gone.  Mr.  Laban  Bassett  explained  that  the 
young  man  had  a  habit  of  leaving  the  table  earlier  than 
the  rest  of  the  boarders. 

"This  mornin'  he  didn't  eat  scarcely  no  breakfast  at 
all,"  declared  Uncle  Labe.  "Hardly  ever  has  but  one 
cup  of  coffee,  but  this  mornin'  he  didn't  drink  more'n 
half  a  cup.  A  body'd  think  'twan't  good,  the  way  he 
went  off  and  left  it." 

Captain  Noah  tasted  the  slate-colored  beverage  in  his 
own  cup.  "A  feller  must  be  crazy  that  goes  off  and 
leaves  coffee  like  that,"  he  observed,  hastily  putting  the 
cup  down  again. 

Uncle  Labe  nodded.  "That's  what  I  tell  him,"  he 
affirmed.  "Especially  this  mornin'.  Why,  today's 
Wednesday,  and  Mis'  Hobbs  makes  it  fresh  every 
Wednesday  and  Saturday.  Don't  catch  me  leavin'  none 
of  mine  settin*  round." 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

The  captain  rose.  "That's  right,"  he  said.  "We  can't 
be  too  careful;  some  child  or  innocent  person  might  get 
hold  of  it.  Well,  so  long." 

He  walked  out  of  the  dining  room,  leaving  the  puzzled 
Mr.  Bassett  to  ask  Ethelinda,  when  that  young  lady  ap 
peared  to  clear  the  table,  who  that  "big,  hulkin'  critter — 
that  Newcomb  one — "  was,  anyhow. 

"I  dunno,"  replied  Ethelinda,  cheerfully.  "Mr.  Clif 
ford  fetched  him  here  last  night,  and  he's  got  the  room 
Mr.  Moses  Tidditt  died  in.  That's  all  I  know  about 
him." 

Uncle  Labe  looked  doubtful.  "Well,"  he  said,  "maybe 
he  ain't  touched  in  the  head,  but  he  talks  mighty  queer 
for  a  sane  person.  Asked  Cap'n  Zeke  how  long  he'd 
been  boardin'  here,  and,  when  Zeke  told  him  three  years, 
he  wanted  to  know  if  he  was  cal'latin'  to  get  anything 
off  for  good  conduct.  I  can't  make  no  sense  out  of  that; 
can  you,  'Linda?" 

"No,  I'm  sartin  sure  I  can't,  Mr.  Bassett.  He  talks 
the  same  way  to  everybody,  though.  I  think  he's  loony 
myself,  but  I  suppose  'tain't  none  of  my  business,  long's 
he  pays  his  board." 

The  captain,  whistling  blithely  if  not  tunefully,  walked 
along  the  main  road  to  the  corner,  where  he  turned  into 
the  lower  road,  just  as  Clifford  had  done  the  previous 
afternoon.  He  looked  about  him  with  interest  as  he 
walked,  for  the  morning  was  a  fine  one  and,  in  spite  of 
the  Hobbs  coffee,  he  was  in  good  spirits.  He  found  him 
self  rather  enjoying  his  enforced  stay  in  the  village  of 
his  boyhood.  That  village  had  changed  greatly,  it  is  true, 
but  its  location  had  not  changed;  the  sea  and  the  air 

49 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

and  the  sky  had  not  changed,  and  more  and  more  of  the 
old  places  became  familiar  to  him  as  his  memory  brought 
them  forward  through  the  years.  Along  that  lower  road 
his  bare  feet  had  stubbed  many  and  many  a  time  on  the 
way  to  the  bay  and  the  "swimming  place."  In  that  house 
there — it  had  no  dormer  windows  then  and  the  porch  was 
new — had  lived  the  girl  who  was  his  "first  choice"  at 
parties.  The  gray,  tumble-down  abandoned  shanty  back 
in  the  field  yonder  had  been  the  home  of  old  Captain 
Joshua  Phinney,  who,  when  himself  a  twelve-year-old, 
had  been  cabin  boy  on  a  ship  boarded  by  pirates.  That 
barn  over  there  was  new,  but  on  the  very  spot  where  it 
stood,  behind  the  clump  of  willows  that  used  to  be  there, 
he  and  Abe  Cole,  the  minister's  son,  had  fought  over  a 
stolen  watermelon.  And  he  had  blackened  Abe's  eye. 
He  wondered  where  Abe  was  now ;  wondered  if  he  was 
living;  if  he  felt  as  kindly  toward  his  old  enemy,  Noah 
Newcomb,  as  that  one  time  enemy  now  felt  toward  him. 

The  view  of  the  bay  from  the  slope  of  Knowles'  Hill 
was  distinctly  satisfying.  It  was  much  as  he  remembered 
it.  The  summer  places  along  the  shores  and  on  the 
knolls  were  new,  of  course,  and  the  boats  at  anchor  were, 
for  the  most  part,  of  the  motor  instead  of  the  sail  va 
rieties.  But,  generally  speaking,  Trumet  Bay  looked  as 
it  used  to  look,  as  he  felt  it  ought  to  look. 

It  must  be  somewhere  along  there  that  Obadiah  Bur 
gess'  property,  that  of  which  he  was  in  search,  was  lo 
cated.  He  decided  that  he  had  better  stop  at  rome  house 
on  the  way  and  ask  particulars  concerning  that  location. 
Then,  as  he  reached  the  crest  of  the  hill,  he  saw  the  name 

50 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

"Balaam  Griggs"  on  the  sign  topping  the  white  picket 
fence,  and  decided  to  ask  Balaam  himself. 

Following  instructions  given  by  the  placard  at  the  bot 
tom  of  the  sign  he  did  not  knock  at  the  locked  front  door, 
but  went  "round  back"  as  directed.  There  were  several 
doors  there,  but  the  farthest  had  chalked  upon  its  upper 
panels  the  words  "Genuine  Antiques  Here,"  so  Captain 
Noah,  although  he  had  no  desire  to  buy  any  antiques, 
thought  it  possible  that  Mr.  Griggs  might  be  with  his 
,  stock  and  rapped  on  that  panel. 

The  person  who  answered  the  knock  was  decidedly  not 
an  antique,  genuine  or  otherwise.  On  the  contrary  she 
was  a  very  attractive  young  woman,  with  a  dust  cloth 
in  her  hand  and  a  sweeping  cap  upon  her  brown  hair. 
In  answer  to  the  captain's  question  she  said,  in  a  voice 
as  pleasant  as  her  appearance : 

"No,  Mr.  Griggs  is  not  in  just  now.  He  has  gone  over 
to  the  village,  I  believe.  Is  there  anything  I  can  do  for 
you?  I  am  his  daughter." 

Captain  Noah  asked  for  and  received  directions  con 
cerning  the  location  of  Mr.  Burgess*  legacy,  the  "Bad- 
scorn  place." 

"I  can  point  it  out  to  you  from  the  other  window,  the 
one  at  the  back  here,"  said  the  young  woman.  "Won't 
you  step  in?" 

The  captain  stepped  in  and  followed  his  guide  through 
a  tangled  maze  of  scarred  bureaus  and  seatless  chairs 
and  crippled  tables  to  a  window  which  commanded  a  view 
of  the  bay  and  the  further  windings  of  the  lower  road. 

"That  is  the  Badscom  place,"  said  the  young  woman, 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

pointing.    "The  old,  low,  whitewashed  house  at  the  top  of 
the  hill." 

"Thank  yon,  thank  you  very  much,  Miss  Griggs,"  said 
the  captain.  Then,  as  he  picked  his  way  through  the 
leggy  tangle  of  chairs  and  tables,  he  added,  "My !  you've 
got  a  lot  of  old  things  here,  ain't  you !  Sell  consider'ble, 
I  presume  likely,  in  the  course  of  a  year;  eh?" 

He  was  sorry  the  moment  after  he  said  it,  realizing 
that  he  had  himself  opened  the  way  to  a  dissertation  on 
"antiques"    and    a   probable    attempt   to   display   choice 
pieces.      But    his    forebodings    were    groundless.      The 
young  woman  did  not  appear  even  interested. 
"Mr.  Griggs  sells  a  good  deal,"  she  answered. 
"Mostly  to  the  summer  folks,  I  suppose?" 
"I  presume  so.     I  know  very  little  about  it." 
She  was  obviously  so  anxious  to  avoid  the  topic,  and 
her  attitude  was  so  decidedly  unlike  that  which  one  would 
have  expected  a  daughter's  attitude  toward  her  father's 
business  to  be,  that  Captain  Noah  was  puzzled  and  curi 
ous.     He  tried  again. 

"That's  a  fine-lookin'  old — old — er — bureau,"  he  ob 
served,  pointing  to  a  battered  and  blackened  relic  before 
him.  "How  much  is  that  worth  now  ?" 

She  shook  her  head.  "I  don't  know,"  she  said.  "You 
will  have  to  see  Mr.  Griggs  about  that." 

"Yes,  yes,  of  course.  But  I  don't  know  when  I've  seen 
a  bureau  like  that.  Kind  of  a  unusual — er — specimen, 
ain't  it?" 

She  looked  at  the  "specimen"  and  then  at  him. 
"It  would  be — if  it  was  a  bureau,"  she  answered,  "but 
I'm  afraid  it's  a  sideboard." 

52 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

Her  eyes  twinkled.  The  captain  put  back  his  head  and 
laughed  heartily. 

"Kind  of  gettin'  out  of  soundin's  that  time,  wan't  I  ?" 
he  observed.  "Well,  it  don't  make  much  difference, 
long's  you  can't  tell  me  what  it's  worth." 

They  had  reached  the  door  by  this  time. 

"I  can't,"  she  said,  her  hand  on  the  latch.  "But  if  you 
can  come  back  in  an  hour  or  two,  I  am  sure  Mr.  Griggs 
will  be  glad  to  tell  you — what  it  sells  for." 

She  closed  the  door.  Captain  Noah  walked  out  of  the 
yard,  a  broad  grin  on  his  face.  Balaam  Griggs'  daughter 
was  strikingly  unlike  her  father,  so  it  seemed  to  him,  un 
like  him  in  every  way.  The  long-legged  dealer  in  real  es 
tate  and  "antiques"  had  not  impressed  him  over  favorably 
at  their  meeting  the  night  before.  But  ':o  the  daughter, 
in  spite  of  her  deficiency  or  indifference  as  a  saleswoman, 
he  had  taken  a  fancy  at  first  sight.  He  had  his  own  opin 
ion  of  the  "antique"  business,  as  too  often  conducted,  and 
he  believed  this  young  woman's  opinion  was  much  like 
his.  The  slight  hesitation  between  the  "you"  and  the 
"what"  in  her  last  sentence  had  not  escaped  his  notice. 
He  was  still  chuckling  over  it  when  he  entered  the  gate 
of  the  "Badscom  place"  and  found  its  new  owner  await 
ing  him  on  the  threshold. 

That  Obadiah  was  glad  to  see  him  there  was  no  doubt ; 
also  there  was  no  doubt  of  the  little  man's  tremendous 
pride  in  his  new  possessions.  He  refused  to  sit  down  or 
to  tell  the  story  of  his  good  fortune  until  he  had  shown 
his  former  skipper  over  the  house,  from  its  queer  circu 
lar,  cemented  pit  of  a  cellar  to  the  long,  dark  attic  with 
the  rows  of  old  chests  and  trunks  under  the  eaves.  The 

53 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

captain  liked  the  old  house  exceedingly.  The  bedrooms, 
with  their  sloping  ceilings,  so  convenient  for  head-bump 
ing;  the  parlor,  with  its  quaint  wall  paper,  the  "spatter 
painted"  floor  of  the  dining  room — all  these  reminded 
him  of  the  house  where  he  had  lived  as  a  boy.  And  the 
view  from  the  windows  overlooking  the  bay  was  really 
exceptionally  fine. 

"You've  got  a  tip-top  place  here,  Obe,"  he  said,  heart 
ily.  "You'll  be  as  snug  and  comf 'table  here  as  a  moth  in 
a  flannel  shirt.  All  you  need  is  a  piazza  out  back  here 
to  pace  the  quarter-deck  on,  and  a  whale-walk  and  a  spy 
glass  on  the  roof,  and  I  don't  see  but  you're  fixed  for 
life." 

Mr.  Burgess'  cherubic  face  beamed. 

"That's  what  I  say,"  he  declared.  "That's  what  I  tell 
Mr.  Griggs.  'There  may  be  b-b-better  places  on  top  of 
the  airth,'  says  I.  'Them  Rockyfellers  you  read  about, 
and  the  Old  Doctor  Bellows'  Bitters  man  that  built  the 
castle  over  t-t-to  Wapatomac,  may  have  more  f-f- fancy 
houses  and  grounds,  but  /  wouldn't  swop  with  'em.  No 
sir-ee/  says  I,  'I  wouldn't,  not  if  they  come  beggin'  me  to 
on  their  b-b-bended  knees/  " 

"That's  the  way  to  talk,  Obe.  I'll  warn  any  millionaire 
that  asks  me  'tain't  any  use  wearin'  out  the  knees  of  his 
trousers  on  your  account.  I  don't  wonder  you're  tickled. 
This  is  better'n  the  galley  of  the  old  Flyaway,  I  will 
give  in.  But  I  want  to  hear  all  about  how  you  got  it. 
Can't  we  come  to  anchor  somewheres  now,  and  talk?" 

They  "came  to  anchor"  in  a  pair  of  rocking-chairs  in 
the  sitting  room.  Captain  Newcomb  reached  into  his 
pocket  for  his  pipe,  but  his  host  prevented  his  filling  it. 

54 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

"When  you  come  to  my  house,  C-C-Cap'n  Noah,"  he 
said,  proudly,  "you  have  to  smoke  m-m-my  cigars." 

He  produced  a  box  of  cigars,  large,  fat  cigars,  gaudily 
banded  and  with  the  likeness  of  a  robust  young  woman 
patriotically  clad  in  the  Stars  and  Stripes  on  the  inside 
of  the  cover.  The  captain  took  one  of  the  cigars  and 
eyed  it  respectfully. 

"I  didn't  know  you  smoked  cigars,  Obadiah,"  he  said. 
"You  didn't  used  to  when  you  sailed  with  me." 

"C-couldn't  afford  to,"  was  the  prompt  reply.  "Now 
I  can.  I'm  worth  t-t-twelve  thousand  dollars  and  this 
house  and  land.  That's  better'n  bein'  cook  on  a  three- 
masted  schooner,  even  on  one  of  your  schooners,  Cap'n 
Noah.  Ain't  it,  now?  He,  he!  Light  up  and  I'll  tell 
you  all  about  Aunt  Sarah's  willin'  it  onto  me." 

Captain  Noah  lit  up,  as  ordered,  and  the  fortunate  lega 
tee  proceeded  to  tell  his  story. 

For  seven  voyages  Obadiah  had,  as  he  told  Balaam 
Griggs  at  the  post  office,  sailed  as  cook  and  steward  on 
the  three-masted  schooner  Flyaway  under  Captain  Noah 
Newcomb.  During  that  time  he  had  learned  to  almost 
worship  his  big  skipper,  certainly  to  reverence  and  re 
spect  him  beyond  all  other  men.  And  the  captain,  for 
his  part,  liked  the  little  man,  although  he,  of  course, 
realized  the  very  obvious  fact  that  his  cook  was  far  from 
being  a  Solomon. 

"Obe's  head  rattles  a  little  mite,"  he  used  to  say,  "and 
the  rattle  gets  into  his  talk,  as  maybe  you've  noticed.  He 
ain't  anybody's  fool  exactly,  but  it  ain't  so  very  hard  to 
fool  him.  His  best  gifts  are  cookin'  and  stut-terin' ;  I'd 
back  him  to  cook  and  stutter  with  anybody.  And  another 

55 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

thing,  he's  clear  grit,  as  nobody  knows  better 'n  me.  If  it 
hadn't  been  for  Obe  Burgess  I  wouldn't  be  here  now." 

Which  was  a  reference  to  the  time  when,  in  a  Central 
American  port,  Captain  Noah  was  seized  with  yellow 
fever  and,  when  his  mates  and  crew  having  run  away,  he 
was  nursed  back  to  health  by  loyal  Obadiah,  who  could 
not  be  coaxed  to  leave  him. 

After  Captain  Newcomb  gave  up  command  of  sailing 
vessels  and  had  entered  the  employ  of  the  Clay  Line,  he 
and  his  former  cook  had  drifted  apart.  Obadiah  had 
cooked  on  a  number  of  coasters  and  fishermen,  had 
worked  in  a  restaurant  on  Atlantic  Avenue  in  Boston, 
had  cooked  for  two  winters  in  a  Maine  lumber  camp, 
and  then,  at  his  Aunt  Sarah  Badscom's  solicitation,  had 
gone  to  live  with  her  at  her  house  in  a  Boston  suburb, 
where  he  took  care  of  the  lawn  in  the  summer  and  the 
furnace  in  the  winter  and  acted  as  a  sort  of  general 
housekeeper  for  the  old  lady,  who  was  his  mother's  half- 
sister. 

"Then,"  explained  Obadiah,  "Aunt  Sarah  she  went  to 
work  and  c-c-caught  pneumony  and  up  and  died.  Course 
she'd  been  tellin'  me  she  was  goin'  to  p-p-pup-provide  for 
me  all  right,  but  I  never  thought  nothin'  of  it.  I  knew 
she  was  well  off,  but  I  cal'lated  her  Cousin  Nathan  Dan 
iels,  that  lives  d-d-down  to  Augusty,  Maine,  would  get 
everything.  Well,  he  did  get  the  heft  of  it,  but  Aunt 
Sarah  she  willed  me  this  old  house,  that  belonged  to 
B-B-Bethuel  Badscom,  her  husband,  and  his  dad  afore 
him,  and  she  left  me  twelve  thousand  along  with  it. 
Well,  sir !  don't  talk !  you  never  see  such  an  upset  critter 
in  your  born  days  as  I  was  when  that  lawyer  told  me.  I 

56 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

recollect  it  was  a  consider'ble  spell  afore  I'd  believe  he 
hadn't  made  a  mistake  and  that  'twan't  twelve  dollars  in 
stead  of  t-t-twelve  thousand.  But,  by  mighty,  'twas  so, 
'twas  so,  Cap'n  Noah !  And  here  I  be,  with  a  house  of 
my  own  and  rich  b-b-besides.  Here,  have  another  cigar, 
won't  ye?  That  one's  gone  out,  ain't  it?" 

His  guest  looked  at  the  stump  of  the  cigar  between  his 
fingers.  He  had  not  been  smoking  it  for  some  time. 

"No,  no  more,  Obe,  thank  you,"  he  said,  hastily. 

"Better  have  another,  hadn't  you  ?  Take  another ,  take 
a  couple.  I  can  afford  'em.  I  ain't  sea-cookin'  any  more 
these  days.  Ho,  ho»!  Smoke  right  up,  Cap'n.  I  like  to 
see  you.  Good  cigars,  ain't  they?  The  'Liberty  Maid/ 
that's  what  they  call  Jem.  Balaam  Griggs  says  there 
ain't  no  better  five-cent  cigar  made.  He  buys  'em  for  me. 
Ever  smoke  a  'Liberty  Maid'  afore,  Cap'n?" 

"No." 

"Sure?  Balaam  says  they're  awful  popular;  maybe 
you've  forgot." 

The  captain  shook  his  head.  "No,"  he  said,  emphat 
ically,  "if  I'd  smoked  one  afore  I  shouldn't  have  forgot 
it.  So  this  Griggs  man  buys  your  cigars  for  you,  does 
he,  Obe?" 

"Land  sakes,  yes!  He  knows  how,  you  see;  I  never 
had  no  experience  buyin'  cigars.  Nor  not  much  else 
neither.  Never  had  much  of  n-n-nothin'  to  buy  with. 
But  Mr.  Griggs  he's  helped  me  out  somethin'  wonderful. 
I  don't  know  what  I'd  done  if  it  hadn't  been  for  him. 
He's  been  a  real  friend,  he  has." 

"So?    Well,  real  friends  are  scarce.    You  want  to  hang 

57 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

on  to  'em — after  you're  good  and  sure  that  they  are  real. 
Known  him  a  long  while,  have  you?" 

"No,  only  a  little  spell.  That's  what  makes  his  kind 
ness  so  wonderful,  you  understand.  He  see  in  the 
p-p-pup-paper  about  Aunt  Sarah  willin'  me  the  house  and 
the  money  and  all  and  he  wrote  me  a  letter.  Said  he  was 
down  here  in  T-T-Trumet,  right  on  the  ground,  as  you 
might  say,  and  if  there  was  anything  he  could  do  to  help 
me  here — as  a  neighbor,  you  understand — he'd  be  glad 
to  do  it.  I  wrote  him  I  was  oc-comin'  down  to  look  her 
over  and  he  met  me  at  the  depot.  I  d-don't  know  what 
he  ain't  done  for  me.  Hired  a  woman  to  clean  house 
here  and  b-bought  dishes  for  me  and  f-f-furniture 
and " 

"Wasn't  the  house  furnished?" 

"Only  part.  Hadn't  anybody  lived  in  it  for  years  and 
years.  There  was  lots  and  lots  of  stuff  needed.  Balaam 
he  bought  most  of  it  for  me." 

"Where'dhegetit?" 

"Oh,  I  don't  know.  Some  he  had  himself,  part  of  it 
was.  You  know  he  sells  antiques  and  such  to  the  sum 
mer  folks.  Some  of  his  best  t-t-tables  and  bureaus  and 
things  that  he  was  holdin'  for  high  p-p-prices  he  let  me 
have  at  cost." 

"Did,  eh?    How  do  you  know  'twas  cost?" 

"He  told  me  so,  himself.  That  come  straight  enough, 
didn't  it  ?  And  what  he  didn't  have  himself  he  went  out 
and  hunted  up  for  me.  Last  night,  now,  after  I  met  you 
at  the  p-p-post  office,  Cap'n,  him  and  me  went  up  to 
John  Bangs'  and  bought  a  bedroom  set  for  forty-two  dol 
lars  that  Mr.  Griggs  says  couldn't  be  duplicated  for  less'n 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

<• 

a  hundred  and  eighteen.  Solid  black  walnut,  'tis,  same  as 
Aunt  Sarah  had  in  her  spare  room,  and  the  only  way 
you'd  know  'twan't  brand-new  is  that  one  of  the  cut-out 
bunches  of  grapes  on  the  bow  end  of  the  bedstead  is 
^nicked  s-s-some  and  there's  a  leetle  mite  of  a  crack  in 
the  m-m-marble  top  of  the  commode.  Balaam  Griggs 
says  that  ain't  nothin' ;  he  says  he  can  show  me  grave 
stones  right  here  in  the  Trumet  cemetery  that  are  cracked 
more'n  that  commode,  and  in  the  b-b-best  lots,  too." 

Captain  Newcomb  laughed  aloud.  "You  couldn't  ask 
anything  better'n  that,  Obadiah,"  he  said.  "Where  is 
that  set?  Has  it  come  down  yet?" 

"No,  but  I  expect  it  'most  any  time.  Balaam's  gone 
up  with  his  team  to  get  it.  He  helped  me  out  there,  too. 
He  says  'twould  cost  me  two  dollars  to  hire  a  horse  and 
truck  wagon  at  the  livery  stable  and  he'll  take  his  horse 
and  borrow  a  wagon  and  'twon't  cost  me  but  a  dollar  and 
a  half.  That's  the  kind  of  friend  to  have,  ain't  it,  Cap'n 
Noah?  I  tell  you  I'm  thankful  I  run  afoul  of  him  the 
way  I  did.  I  only  wisht  you  knew  him  better." 

"Humph!  I'm  beginnin'  to  wish  I  did,  myself.  I 
stopped  at  his  house  just  now  to  ask  the  way  here.  That 
daughter  of  his  is  a  mighty  pretty  and  nice-appearin' 
girl." 

"She  ain't  his  real  daughter.  She's  the  daughter  of  his 
second  wife ;  her  name's  Mary  Barstow.  I'm  afraid  she's 
a  kind  of  trial  to  him." 

"So?  She  don't  look  it.  I  could  find  a  schooner  load 
of  men  in  an  hour  that  would  be  glad  to  take  the  trial  off 
his  hands,  I  shouldn't  wonder.  What's  the  matter  with 
her?" 

6  59 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

"Oh,  nothin'  special,  I  cal'late,  only  she's  kind  of  spiled 
and  sot  in  her  ways,  I  judge.  Mr.  Griggs  don't  want 
young  fellers  hangin'  around  her  yet  awhile.  She's  too 
young  for  that,  he  thinks." 

"He  does,  eh?  I  don't  believe  he'd  want  to  leave  that 
question  to  a  referee.  She's  twenty-one,  ain't  she?" 

"Just  about,  I  cal'late.  That  young  cold-storage  engi 
neer,  Clifford  his  name  is,  would  like  to  keep  company 
with  her  now,  I  cal'late  if  her  pa  would  let  him." 

"So?  Irving  Clifford,  the  young  chap  that  has  rooms 
at  the  Mansion  House  ?  I've  met  him." 

"That's  the  one.  Mr.  Balaam  he  says  he's  afraid  that 
young  man  ain't  much  account." 

"Humph ;  I  want  to  know !  I  liked  what  I'd  seen  of 
him  first-rate.  Your  friend  Balaam  must  be  particular. 
Well,  Obe,  tell  me  a  little  more  about  yourself.  Made 
any  plans  about  what  you're  goin'  to  do  down  here,  have 
you?" 

Obadiah  crossed  his  knees.  "Well,"  he  said,  with  a 
self-satisfied  smirk,  "I  don't  know's  I'm  goin'  to  do  any 
thing  'special.  I  cal'late  I'm  as  well  f-f-fixed  as  ever  I 
want  to  be;  enough  sight  more'n  I  ever  expected  to  be, 
I  know  that.  Nice  house  and  land,  p-p-plenty  of  money, 
2nd  my  health.  What  more  do  I  want?" 

"Yes,  I  know.  You've  got  enough  to  keep  you — if  you 
keep  it.  Who's  goin'  to  take  care  of  your  house  for 
you?" 

"Cal'latin'  to  do  it  myself.  May  have  a  woman  come 
in  once  a  week  or  so  to  do  the  scrubbin'  up.  Mr.  Griggs 
he  thinks  that  would  be  a  good  idea.  He  cal'lates  he  can 

60 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

coax  this  same  woman,  this  Hedge  one,  to  do  it  for  a 
spell." 

"Um-hm,  I  see.  He'll  do  the  hirin'  as  well  as  the 
coaxin',  I  presume  likely,  won't  he?" 

"Yes.  He  saves  me  a  lot  of  trouble.  I  don't  know 
how  I'll  ever  pay  him  back." 

"I  wouldn't  worry  about  that — much.  Is  this  twelve 
thousand  of  yours  pretty  well  invested,  Obadiah?" 

"Six  per  cent.  Seven  hundred  and  twenty  a  year  I  get 
out  of  it.  Gosh  t'  mighty !  I've  "worked  many's  the  year 
for  enough  sight  less'n  that.  And  now  I  just  set  down 
and  they  come  and  hand  it  t-t-to  me,  as  you  might  say." 

"Yes.  Well,  you  take  my  advice  and  let  'em  keep  on 
handin'  it.  Don't  get  ambitious  and  help  yourself  to  more 
out  of  the  principal.  And  don't  let  anybody  talk  you 
into  doin'  it,  either." 

"Oh,  I  shan't.  I  wouldn't  touch  that  principal  for 
nothin' — that  is,  except  to  buy  a  little  furniture  for  the 
house,  you  know;  I  had  t-t-to  do  that,  of  course.  No, 
I'm  goin'  to  be  savin'  as  ever  I  was,  Cap'n  Noah ;  don't 
you  worry  about  me.  But  s-s-s-sorne  day  I'm  goin'  to 
travel.  A  sea-cook  don't  get  no  chance  t-t-to  see  nothin' 
of  the  world  except  the  wet  places  in  it,  and  I  mean  to 
go  everywhere — Niagary  and  M-M-Mum-Mammoth 
Cave  and  White  Mountains  and  Syracuse,  New  York." 

"Syracuse  ?  What  in  the  nation  do  you  want  to  go  to 
Syracuse  for?" 

"Cause  I've  heard  so  much  about  it;  what  an  elegant 
p-p-place  'twas  and  all.  After  I  left  you,  Cap'n  Noah,  I 
sailed  along  of  a  second  mate  that  hailed  from  Syracuse 
and  he  was  always  talkin'  about  what  a  fust-class  t-t-town 

61 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

'twas.  Always  goin'  b-b-back  there  end  of  every  cruise,  he 
was.  I  guess  likely  he  would  only  he  spent  all  his  money 
for  rum  and  p-p-pup-police  fines  and  never  had  enough 
left  to  pay  fare.  He — why,  you  ain't  goin',  be  you,  Cap'n  ? 
Don't  go.  I  was  kind  of  hopin'  you'd  give  up  the  hotel 
and  come  down  and  visit  long  with  me  for  a  spell." 

"I'd  like  to,  Obe,  but  I  can't  just  now.  I  may  have  to 
go  over  to  South  Trumet  this  afternoon  and  see  how  the 
Commodore's  gettin'  on  with  that  automobile  of  mine. 
But  I'll  see  you  again  afore  I  go.  Yes,  I  promise  that. 
.  .  .  Hello !  here  comes  your  self-sacrificin'  friend  with 
the  new  second-hand  bedroom  set.  Is  that  the  horse  he 
rented  to  you  for  a  dollar  and  a  half?  Why  didn't  you 
pay  him  a  dollar  more  and  buy  the  critter?" 

"Eh?  B-b-Zwy  him?  Wh-what  kind  of  talk's  that? 
You  can't  buy  a  horse  for  t-t-two  dollars  and  a  half? 
N-n-not  unless  it's  a  dead  one." 

"Can't  you?  Well,  maybe  you're  right,  Obe.  And 
that  one  ain't  much  more'n  half  dead,  is  he?  Well,  so 
long.  Hello,  Mr.  Griggs!  Good  mornin'!" 

The  Griggs  welcome  was  effusive.  Balaam  had  had 
the  opportunity  to  talk  with  Mr.  Burgess  concerning  the 
latter's  nautical  friend,  and  Obadiah  had  spoken  largely 
of  the  friend's  wisdom  and  ability  and  wealth  and  in 
fluential  connections.  The  wealth  was  largely  imaginary, 
but  this  Mr.  Griggs  did  not  know. 

"How  do  you  do,  Cap'n  Newcomb,  sir?"  he  cried,  his 
tone  and  handshake  exuding  cordiality.  "How  do  you 
do,  sir?  Been  lookin'  over  Mr.  Burgess'  property,  have 
you?  Some  property,  I  call  it,  sir — some  property." 

62 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

"Yes,  seems  to  be;  some  property  and  the  rest  sand. 
Good  day,  Mr.  Griggs.  So  long,  Obe ;  see  you  later." 

On  the  way  out  of  the  yard  he  paused  for  a  moment  to 
inspect  the  "solid  walnut  bedroom  set"  which  Obadiah 
had  been  able  to  purchase,  through  the  help  of  his  agent, 
at  such  a  bargain.  Whatever  he  thought  of  the  bargain, 
he  said  nothing.  Mr.  Burgess,  himself)  came  running 
from  the  house. 

"Gosh!"  he  panted,  "I  'most  forgot.  Have  another 
"Liberty  Maid'  to  smoke  on  your  way  along.  Light  right 
up.  I  b-b-brought  the  matches." 

Captain  Noah  appeared  to  hesitate  momentarily.  Then 
he  took  the  proffered  cigar,  bit  off  the  end,  lighted  the 
other  end,  and  with  a  "Thanks,  Obe,"  strode  up  the  road, 
puffing  like  a  tugboat.  The  puffing  continued  until  he 
was  out  of  sight  from  the  house.  Then  he  tossed  the 
"Liberty  Maid"  into  a  ditch,  made  a  face,  and  walked  on. 
It  was  evident,  from  his  preoccupied  manner,  that  he  was 
thinking  deeply  and  that  his  thoughts  troubled  him  a  bit. 

He  did  not,  of  course,  go  to  South  Trumet  and  the 
garage  that  afternoon,  but  that  evening  he  did  telephone 
to  his  proverb-quoting  acquaintance,  the  "Commodore," 
and  learned  with  satisfaction  that  the  needed  "parts"  had 
arrived  on  the  night  train.  The  car  would  be  ready  two 
days  later,  as  promised. 


CHAPTER   V 

HE  spent  the  next  day  and  a  half  in  wandering 
about  Trumet.  At  Irving  Clifford's  urgent  invi 
tation  he  accompanied  the  latter  to  the  scene  of 
his  labors,  the  half -completed  cold-storage  warehouse. 
Clifford  took  him  over  the  big  building,  explained  where 
the  engines  were  to  be  placed,  how  the  ammonia  pipes 
were  set  and  arranged,  and  described  quite  thoroughly 
the  equipment  ami  the  process  used  in  freezing  fish.  The 
captain  was  much  interested. 

"Humph!"  he  grunted,  musingly.  "Just  freeze  'em 
and  keep  'em  forever  and  ever,  amen ;  eh  ?" 

"Pretty  nearly  that,  Captain." 

"Yes,  I  presume  likely  now  if  I  should  drift  into  one 
of  these  rooms  after  you  got  her  started  and  laid  down 
and  went  to  sleep  I'd  freeze  up  same  as  a  herriri',  eh  ?" 

"Much  the  same,  I  imagine." 

"Sho !  And,  if  nobody  disturbed  me  for  a  hundred  year 
or  so,  my  great-grandchildren,  if  I  had  any,  could  step 
in  any  time  and  see  what  the  old  man  looked  like.  That's 
a  queer  thing  to  think  about,  ain't  it?" 

"Ha,  ha!     Yes,  it  certainly  is." 

"Um-hm.    Say,  son,  I  believe  I've  met  and  talked  with 

64 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

folks  that  have  had  somethin'  like  that  happen  to  'em. 
They  must  have  been  froze  for  a  couple  of  generations 
and  only  just  woke  up.  That  would  explain  why  they're 
walkin'  around  here  in  nineteen  hundred  and  so  on  and 
thinkin'  and  reasonin'  back  in  eighteen  hundred  and 
forty.  I've  always  wondered  why  it  was,  and  now  I 
know,  they've  been  in  cold-storage.  It's  a  great  comfort 
to  strike  on  a -satisfy in'  explanation,  ain't  it?" 

Clifford,  much  amused,  said  it  certainly  was. 

"I  bet  you !  I've  been  to  more'n  one  church  in  my  time 
and  had  to  listen  to  a  cold-storage  sermon." 

He  and  Clifford  spent  the  evenings  together.  The  engi 
neer  enjoyed  his  new  friend's  society  and  wished  he  were 
going  to  stay  longer.  Congenial  male  friends  the  young 
man  had  found  rather  scarce  in  Trumet  and,  although  he 
had  known  Noah  Newcomb  so  short  a  time,  he  liked  him. 
There  was  a  marked  difference  in  their  ages,  Clifford  not 
yet  thirty  and  the  captain  just  past  the  half-century  mark, 
but  so  far  as  spirit  was  concerned  one  was  not  more 
youthful  than  the  other.  And  if  there  were  any  physical 
deterioration  in  the  big  frame  of  the  older  man,  no  evi 
dences  were  visible.  They  had  occasion  to  row  across 
the  bay  on  the  morning  of  the  third  day  and  Captain 
Noah  insisted  on  handling  the  oars.  There  was  a  strong 
head  tide,  but  when  they  reached  the  wharf  at  the  other 
side  the  captain's  breathing  was  as  full  and  regular  as 
when  they  started. 

He  asked  a  good  many  questions  concerning  people  and 
village  affairs,  but  he  asked  none  concerning  Balaam 
Griggs  or  his  stepdaughter.  None  of  Clifford,  that  is, 
but  at  the  Mansion  House  Captain  Zeke  Penniman  and 

65 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

Uncle  Labe  Bassett  were  systematically  "pumped,"  al 
though  they  themselves  were  quite  unconscious  of  the 
process.  One  item  picked  up  from  Mr.  Bearse,  the  fish 
peddler,  was  also  of  interest.  Captain  Noah  had  led  the 
conversation  to  the  subject  of  "antiques."  Peleg  waxed 
sarcastic  and  profane. 

"I  ain't  got  no  patience  with  the  whole  d n  foolish 
ness  !"  he  declared.  "If  I  had  my  way  I'd  have  the  law 
onto  it;  I'd  put  a  stop  to  it  some  way.  The  way  them 
summer  folks  spend  money  on — on  old  busted  crockery 
and  chairs  with  the  shakin'  palsy  is  sinful — yes,  sir,  sin 
ful!  Why,  I  had  a  old  blue  platter  that  my  wife  used  to 
keep  soap  fat  in  out  in  the  woodshed.  Bale  Griggs  he 
see  it  one  day  and  he  says,  'That's  a  good-sized  platter, 
ain't  it/  he  says.  'I  been  wantin'  a  platter  like  that  to 
feed  my  hens  on/  'To  feed  your  hens  on!'  I  sung  out. 
'Do  you  feed  your  hens  on  Chiny  dishes,  for  the  Lord 
sakes?'  'I  don't  mean  my  hens,  my  big  hens/  says  he. 
'I  mean  my  little  chickens;  I've  got  slathers  of  little 
chickens  this  spring.  Want  to  sell  that  old  platter,  do 
you?'  'I  don't  know's  I  do/  says  I.  'It's  kind  of  handy 
to  have  round.  What'll  you  give  for  it?'  'Oh/  he  says, 
'I  don't  know's  I  ain't  crazy  to  give  anything  for  the  old 
thing,  but  maybe  I'd  give  twenty  cents  or  a  quarter, 
maybe/  Well,  we  haggled  around  some  and  finally  I  let 
it  go  for  forty  cents,  figgered  I  was  in  about  thirty-eight 
and  a  half  cents  at  that.  And  a  month  later,  by  godf  reys ! 
just  one  month  later,  blessed  if  he  didn't  sell  that  same 
platter  to  a  Chicago  loon  that  was  stoppin'  down  at  the 
big  hotel,  for  twelve  dollars.  Twelve — dollars!  My  god- 
freys!  Wan't  that  a  crime?  Wouldn't  you  think  he'd 

66 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

have  been  ashamed?  Eh,  Cap'n  Newcomb,  now  wouldn't 
you  ?" 

"Yes." 

"So  would  I.  And  what  makes  me  so  mad  is  that  I 
knew  that  Chicago  man  just  as  well  as  he  did  and,  more'n 
likely,  I  could  have  sold  the  platter  for  twelve  dollars  to 
that  same  feller — if  I'd  only  known  he  or  anybody  else 
would  have  paid  it.  But  Balaam  Griggs  knew  all  right. 
You  bet  he  knew! 

"He's  always  snoopin'  round  buyin'  things  to  sell 
again,"  went  on  the  irate  Peleg.  "Why,  I  see  John  Bangs 
day  afore  yesterday  and  he  told  me  he  was  cal'latin*  to 
sell  Balaam  a  black  walnut  bedroom  set  he  had  up  garret. 
Said  Bale  had  offered  him  twelve-fifty  for  it,  but  he  was 
holdin'  out  for  fifteen.  Yesterday  mornin'  I  see  Balaam 
drivin'  down  along  with  a  bedstead  and  a  bureau  and 
commode  in  his  cart,  so  I  cal'late  him  and  John  made  a 
dicker.  I'll  bet  you  Griggs  sticks  some  poor  trustin'  idiot 
twenty  dollars  or  more  for  that  same  set." 

Captain  Noah  rubbed  his  chin. 

"I  shouldn't  wonder,"  he  said,  slowly.  "I  shouldn't 
wonder  a  bit — and  then  some." 

But  neither  of  this  nor  of  other  information  gathered 
from  the  regular  boarders  at  the  Mansion  House  did  the 
captain  speak  during  his  next  call  upon  Mr.  Burgess.  It 
was  a  short  call ;  he  had  received  word  from  the  garage 
that  his  car  was  ready,  and  that  afternoon  he  was  to  start 
• — to  start,  he  emphasized  the  word  strongly  when  stating 
his  intention  to  Clifford — for  Boston  in  it.  And  in  ac 
cordance  with  his  promise,  he  came  once  more  before 
leaving  to  the  old  house  on  the  hill. 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

Obadiah  and  he  shook  hands  and  said  good-by  at  the 
gate. 

"Well,  Cap'n  Noah,"  said  the  little  man,  "I'm  awful 
glad  I  had  the  chance  to  see  you  this  much,  but  I'm  awful 
sorry  you  can't  stay  longer.  If  you'd  only  stay  and  make 
a  little  visit  along  with  me  I'd  be  tickled.  But  I've  asked 
you  and  asked  you  and  you  keep  on  sayin'  you  won't." 

The  captain  shook  his  head.  "You're  wrong,  Oba 
diah,"  he  answered;  "I  keep  on  sayin'  I  can't — not  this 
time.  But  I  tell  you,  some  of  these  days  I'm  comin'  back 
to  Trumet  again,  and  when  I  do  maybe  I'll  make  that 
little  visit  you've  said  so  much  about." 

"Well,  I  hope  you  will,  but  I  don't  know.  A  busy  man 
as  you  are  ain't  likely  to  find  much  in  Trumet  to  interest 
him." 

"Oh,  I  don't  know.  I  can  see  one  or  two  things  de- 
velopin'  here  now  that  are  liable  to  be  pretty  interestin' 
afore  they  finish.  I  cal'late  you'll  see  me,  Obe ;  sooner'n 
you  expect,  maybe.  And  now  let  me  tell  you  this: 
There's  my  address  on  that  card  I  gave  you.  A  letter  or 
a  telegram  or  anything  sent  to  me  there  will  reach  me 
sooner  or  later.  If  ever  you  need  me,  Obe — that  is  to 
say,  if  you're  in  trouble  or  in  a  tight  place  and  don't  know 
how  to  get  out,  if  you  want  help  or  advice  or  anything — 
why,  don't  you  hesitate  to  send  for  me.  Don't  you  hesi 
tate  a  minute.  If  I'm  on  top  of  this  earth  anywheres 
I'll  come." 

The  ex-cook  looked  up  into  his  former  skipper's  face 
with  the  old  expression  of  doglike  regard  and  reverence. 

"That's  awful  kind  of  you,  Cap'n,"  he  said ;  "it  is  so. 
I  thank  you  a  thousand  times.  But  'tain't  likely  I  shall 

68 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

need  any  of  them  things.  Looks  to  me  as  if  I  wan't 
liable  to  get  into  any  trouble;  way  I  figger  I'm  out  of  it 
for  k-k-keeps  and  'twill  be  smooth  sailin'  for  me  to  the 
end  of  the  v'yage." 

"I  know,  but  you  can't  always  tell,  Obe.  Sometimes 
there  are  rocks  and  shoals  that  ain't  down  on  the  chart. 
Remember  now,  if  you  want  me  just  give  me  a  hail. 
Promise." 

"Land  yes,  I'll  promise,  Cap'n  Noah.  You're  just  as 
good-hearted  as  you  used  to  be,  ain't  you.  I  never  could 
see  why  you  was  so  good  to  a  little  no-account  sort  of 
critter  like  me.  I  can't  see  it  n-n-now,  either." 

"Can't  you,  Obe  ?  Well,  maybe  you've  forgot  the  time 
when  that  same  little  no-account  stuck  by  me  when  every 
other  hand  afloat  or  ashore  skipped  out  and  left  me  to 
fight  Yellow  Jack  alone.  I  say  maybe  you've  forgotten 
it,  but  I  ain't — and  I  ain't  likely  to.  Well,  so  long,  Obe. 
Good  luck  and  a  fair  wind.  So  long." 

That  afternoon  Irving  Clifford  robbed  the  cold-storage 
company  of  time  sufficient  to  accompany  the  captain  to 
South  Trumet  and  to  ride  back  as  far  as  the  Mansion 
House  in  the  little  car.  During  the  three-mile  ride  he 
had  given  the  owner  of  that  car  all  the  advice  in  his 
power,  advice  concerning  driving,  steering,  stopping  and 
even  slight  repairing.  At  the  walk  in  front  of  the  hotel 
he  alighted,  rather  reluctantly  it  must  be  confessed. 

"I  must  leave  you,  Captain  Newcomb,"  he  said,  "and, 
to  be  honest,  I  hate  to  do  it.  I  hate  to  see  you  start  fer 
Boston." 

The  captain  chuckled. 

"I  know  you  do,"  he  said.    "I  can  see  it  in  your  face. 

69 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

Well,  now,  I'm  goin'  to  tell  you  this,  son :  I'm  not  only 
goin'  to  start  for  Boston  in  this  craft,  but  I'm  goin'  to  get 
there  in  her — some  time  or  other.  She  and  I  may  go  in 
swimmin'  together  two  or  three  times  more,  if  there's 
ponds  enough  handy,  but  never  mind,  when  we  get  to 
Portland  I'll  be  boss  of  the  ship.  I've  handled  a  ten  thou 
sand  ton  steamboat  in  my  day,  and  no  tin  dingey  on 
wheels  is  goin'  to  beat  me,  if  I  know  it.  And  all  this 
doesn't  mean  that  I  ain't  more  obliged  to  you  than  I  can 
tell,  Mr.  Clifford.  I  am,  and  I  hope  you  know  it.  I'm 
sorry  I  can't  stop  and  have  you  give  me  more  lessons  in 
pilotin',  but  I  can't,  haven't  the  time.  Don't  you  worry 
about  me,  though.  I'll  drop  you  a  line  from  whatever 
port  I  make  tonight  and  so  on  as  I  navigate  up  the  coast." 

Clifford  smiled.  "I'm  not  greatly  worried  about  your 
safety,"  he  said.  "I'm  pretty  sure  you'll  get  through 
without  trouble.  But  I  do  hate  to  have  you  leave  Trumet. 
My  offer  to  give  you  lessons  in  driving  wasn't  entirely 
unselfish,  you  see.  I  have  enjoyed  your  society  very 
much  and  I  wanted  more  of  it,  that  was  all.  I  hate  to 
lose  you,  Captain." 

Captain  Noah  was  plainly  much  pleased.  He  leaned 
from  the  car  and  shook  the  young  man's  hand. 

"Well,  now,  I'm  much  obliged  to  you,"  he  declared, 
heartily.  "And  it's  the  same  here  and  many  of  'em.  But 
you  ain't  got  rid  of  me  yet.  It's  about  a  hundred  to  one 
shot  that  some  of  these  days  you'll  see  me  comin'  down 
here  again.  Well,  it's  time  to  cast  off,  I  cal'late.  All 
ashore  that's  goin'  ashore!  So  long,  son." 

The  little  car  buzzed  down  the  main  road.  It  disap- 

70 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

peared,  taking  a  wide  sweep  around  the  bend.  Clifford, 
watching  it,  wondered  if  he  should  ever  see  it  or  its  driver 
again.  He  hoped  so,  certainly.  He  had  meant  what  he 
.said — he  hated  to  lose  Captain  Noah  Newcomb. 


CHAPTER   VI 

THE  following  day  he  received  a  post  card  from 
a  town  midway  between  Trumet  and  Boston. 
The  little  car  and  its  driver  had  reached  that 
point  the  previous  night  without,  so  Captain  Noah  wrote, 
"running  on  the  rocks  or  sinking  any  of  the  channel 
traffic."  The  captain  hoped  and  expected  to  make  the 
city  before  another  nightfall.  That  he  had  done  so,  a 
second  post  card  proved.  There  came  a  third,  this  time 
from  Portland.  "Safe,  sound  and  considerable  aston 
ished  on  account  of  it,"  wrote  Noah.  Clifford  wrote  a 
note  in  reply.  That  ended  the  correspondence.  No 
more  letters  came  from  the  Maine  metropolis,  and  in 
Trumet  the  engineer's  time  was,  between  work  and  purely 
personal  interests,  fully  occupied.  He  did  not  forget 
his  salty  pupil  in  the  art  of  auto  piloting;  he  thought  of 
him  occasionally  and  wondered  where  he  might  be,  even 
resolved  to  write  and  find  out,  but  being  very  busy  at 
the  storage  plant  and  somewhat  worried  by  the  personal 
interest  just  mentioned,  his  resolutions  never  became  per 
formances.  And  the  winter  passed,  spring  came  and 
went,  and  summer  was  at  hand. 

It  was  a  beautiful  June  forenoon  when  the  little  car 

72 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

once  more  appeared  on  Trumet's  main  street.  And,  as 
on  the  occasions  of  its  former  appearances,  Captain 
Noah  Newcomb  was  at  the  helm.  But  now  he  did  not 
crouch  over  the  wheel,  his  hands  bent  in  a  petrified 
clutch  at  its  circumference  and  his  eyes  glaring  at  the 
road  just  ahead.  Indeed,  no.  The  captain  leaned  back 
against  the  upholstery  and  his  clutch  upon  the  wheel 
was  light  but  confident.  He  did  not  glare  at  the  road; 
he  smoked  a  cigar  and  looked  easily  about  him.  And  in 
the  wake  left  in  the  dust  by  the  tires  of  that  little  car 
there  was  not  to  be  discerned  one  nervous  "jiggle."  It 
was  plain  that  Captain  Noah  had  become,  as  he  had 
sworn  to  become,  "boss  of  the  ship." 

He  sailed  down  the  main  road  at  a  twenty  mile  an 
hour  clip,  and  as  he  passed  the  platform  of  the  Mansion 
House  he  looked  hopefully  up  at  it.  But  the  only  per 
son  visible  was  Ethelinda,  who  was  dusting  the  piazza 
chairs.  Her  glance  was  fixed  upon  the  manly  beauty  of 
Izzy  Thacher,  the  grocer's  boy,  who  was  delivering  a 
basket  at  Mrs.  Copeland's  across  the  street,  and  she  had 
eyes  for  no  one  else.  However,  the  captain  paused  long 
enough  to  hail. 

"Hello!  Hi !"  he  shouted.  "Is  Mr.  Clifford  on  board, 
do  you  know,  sis?" 

Ethelinda  heard  him,  but  it  suited  her  t0  pretend  that 
she  did  not.  The  grocer's  boy  was  looking  on  and 
Ethelinda  felt  that  she  had  a  dignity  to  maintain.  She 
went  on  with  her  dusting. 

"Hi!"  shouted  the  captain  again.  "Hi,  you — er— 
what's  your  name — Shindy  ?  Windy  ?  Oh,  Lindy ;  that's 

73 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

it.  Say,  Lindy,  do  you  know  whether  Mr.  Clifford's 
inside  there  or  not?" 

'Linda,  nose  in  air  and  conscious  that  Izzy  across  the 
road  was  grinning  broadly,  condescended  to  reply. 

"Was  you  speakin'  to  me?"  she  drawled,  crushingly. 

Captain  Noah  looked  at  her  with  eager  interest.  "Yes, 
I  was,"  he  said.  "You  guessed  it  the  very  first  time. 
My,  but  you're  a  smart  girl !  Now  see  if  you  can  guess 
what  I  asked  you." 

Izzy  burst  into  a  delighted  "Haw,  haw!"  Ethelinda 
flounced  into  the  hotel  to  inform  Mrs.  Hobbs  that  that 
crazy  man  that  was  here  last  fall  had  come  back  again 
and  was  ravin'  worse  than  ever.  The  captain,  quite  un 
perturbed,  turned  to  Mr.  Thacher  and  asked  the  latter 
if  he  knew  where  Mr.  Clifford  might  be  found. 

"Down  to  the  cold-storage,  I  cal'late,"  replied  Izzy. 
"He  was  a  spell  ago,  anyhow,  'cause  I  see  him." 

So  to  the  cold-storage  plant  went  the  little  car,  piloted 
by  Captain  Newcomb.  The  plant,  now  almost  ready  to 
open  for  business,  was  situated  on  a  point  at  the  mouth 
of  Trumet  Bay  on  the  southern  shore.  Several  work 
men  were  busy  on  the  roof  of  the  engine-house  exten 
sion  searching  for  a  leak  which  had  developed  during  the 
winter's  storm-beating.  The  captain  pulled  up  in  front 
of  the  building  and  alighted. 

"Mr.  Clifford  around?"  he  asked,  hailing  the  work 
men  on  the  roof. 

"Don't  know,"  was  the  careless  answer.  ''Ain't  seen 
him  lately.  Maybe  he's  inside  somewheres." 

The  captain  entered  the  engine  room.  The  engines 
were  in  place  now  and  the  room  seemed  ready  for  occu- 

74 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

pancy.  Even  the  big  fire  hose  connected  with  the  pres 
sure  tank  hung  coiled  on  the  wall.  There  was  no  sign  of 
Clifford,  however,  and  Captain  Noah,  after  a  look  around, 
emerged  from  the  building  to  find  another  visitor  stand 
ing  by  his  automobile  and  regarding  it  with  an  expres 
sion  of  amused  condescension. 

This  visitor  was  evidently  not  a  Trumet  "native."  In 
fact,  he  looked  as  much  out  of  place  down  there  on  the 
beach  amid  the  bundles  of  seaweed  rolled  in  by  the  win 
ter  tides,  the  clam  shells  and  the  defunct  "horsefoot" 
crabs,  to  say  nothing  of  the  shavings  and  chips  and  build 
ers'  debris,  as  an  orchid  might  have  looked  in  a  potato 
patch.  He  was  a  rather  undersized,  slim  person,  with 
a  closely  trimmed,  waxed  mustache,  a  fancy  waistcoat, 
spats  and  a  bamboo  walking-stick.  He  was  smoking  a 
cigarette  in  a  meerschaum  holder.  As  Captain  Noah  ap 
proached  he  languidly  lifted  one  gaitered  foot  to  the 
hub  of  the  auto's  wheel  and  tapped  the  radiator  with 
his  cane. 

"Who  owns  this — er — Panhard?"  he  asked,  address 
ing  the  workmen  on  the  roof.  "Clifford  hasn't  been  go 
ing  in  for  jewelry,  has  he?" 

One  of  the  workmen  replied.  It  was  the  same  fellow 
who  had  answered  the  captain's  inquiry,  and  now,  as  he 
spoke,  he  was  unaware  that  the  captain  himself  was 
standing  in  the  doorway  beneath  him.  "No,  'tain't  Clif 
ford's,"  he  said.  "Belongs  to  a  feller  that  came  here 
lookin'  for  him.  Some  flivver,  ain't  it,  Mr.  Wentworth  ? 
Got  her  dolled  up  regardless,  ain't  he?" 

The  slim  gentleman  deigned  to  smile.  "Rather,"  he 
admitted,  and  tapped  the  radiator  again. 

6  75 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

Now  the  glistening  varnish  on  that  car  was  the  pride 
of  its  owner's  heart.  During  the  trying  period  of  his 
initiation  into  the  science  of  driving  it  had  received 
some  severe  scratches  and  humps,  but  these  scars  had  all 
been  covered,  the  nickel  was  polished  each  morning  and 
no  mud  was  permitted  to  cake  upon  the  wheels.  Vari 
ous  improvements  the  captain  had  added  during  the  win 
ter  —  electric  lights,  a  self-starter  and  a  clock  were  some 
of  these.  And  now  to  see  this  lofty  stranger  carelessly 
thumping  upon  the  hood,  upon  the  polished  shirt-front, 
so  to  speak,  of  his  pet  was  a  little  too  much.  Captain 
Noah  uttered  a  mild  protest. 

"Excuse  me,  Mister/'  he  said,  coming  forward,  "but 
perhaps  you  wouldn't  mind  hittin'  not  quite  so  hard. 
That  paint  on  there's  kind  of  fresh  —  I  had  her  revar- 
nished  a  little  spell  ago  —  and  so  I  —  Well,  you  see,  I'm 
kind  of  fussy.  Excuse  me,  won't  you?" 

The  stranger  turned  and  looked  him  over.  So  far  as 
consideration  for  the  captain's  feelings  went  he  might 
have  been  inspecting  a  wooden  image. 

"You  see,"  went  on  the  latter,  "I—  I  —  er—  well,  per 
haps  you'll  think  I'm  too  particular  about  that  car,  but 


The  slim  person  interrupted.  "Where's  Clifford?"  he 
demanded,  addressing  the  workmen  on  the  roof. 

"I  don't  know,  Mr.  Wentworth.  Ain't  he  inside?  I 
thought  he  was.  He,"  pointing  to  Noah,  "was  in  there 
just  now  lookin*  for  him.  Did  you  find  him,  Mister  ?" 

"No,  didn't  seem  to  be  there.  Hi!  Whose  dog's 
this?" 

76 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

A  brindle  bull  terrier  had  suddenly  made  his  appear 
ance  and  was  sniffing  hungrily  at  the  captain's  ankles. 

"Hi!  get  out!"  commanded  Noah,  uneasily.  "Say, 
whose  dog  is  this,  anyhow  ?" 

The  person  addressed  as  Mr.  Wentworth  smiled 
slightly.  The  captain's  uneasiness  appeared  to  amuse 
him, 

"He's  mine,  I  believe,"  he  drawled. 

"He  is,  eh?    Well,  does  he  bite?" 

"Sometimes." 

"I  want  to  know!     Well,  do  you  cal'late  he'll  bite 


"I  hope  not,  but  you  can't  always  tell.  Sometimes  he 
isn't  very  particular." 

A  smothered  giggle  came  from  the  roof.  Captain 
Noah,  glancing  up,  saw  that  the  workmen  had  stopped 
hammering  and  were  enjoying  the  tableau  below. 

"Call  the  critter  off,"  he  commanded,  sharply.  Mr. 
W7entworth  languidly  snapped  his  fingers. 

"Here,  Sport!"  he  said.  The  dog  left  off  sniffing  at 
the  captain's  ankles  and  trotted  to  his  master,  wagging 
an  abbreviated  tail.  Noah  smiled,  apologetically.  "Al 
ways  makes  me  nervous  to  have  a  strange  dog  smellin' 
around  my  legs,"  he  observed.  "  'Tain't  likely  he  meant 
anything,  you  know,  but  —  er  —  What  kind  of  a  dog  is 
he?  What  you  might  call  a  watchdog,  eh?" 

Mr.  Wentworth  smiled  again.  His  was  a  queer  smile, 
a  lazy  smile,  a  sort  of  tired  smile,  which  lifted  one  cor 
ner  of  his  mouth  but  did  not  disturb  the  rest  of  his 
countenance.  The  countenance  as  a  whole  looked  tired 
also  ;  it  was  pouched  a  bit  under  the  eyes  and  lined  from 

77 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

the  nostril  to  the  corner  of  the  jaw;  a  sophisticated, 
weary  sort  of  face,  one  which  looked  as  if  it  might  have 
seen  a  great  deal  of  life — some  kinds  of  life. 

"Why,  yes,"  drawled  Mr.  Wentworth,  "I  presume  you 
might  call  him  that — if  you  cared  to.  He's  a  pretty  good 
watcher,  at  that.  If  I  told  him  to  watch  anything  I 
rather  think  he'd  watch  it." 

"You  don't  say!" 

"Yes,  I  do.  For  instance."  He  strolled  over  and 
rapped  the  step  of  the  automobile  with  his  cane. 

"Guard,  Sport,"  he  said.  Sport  trotted  over  to  the 
car  and  sat  down  by  the  step. 

"Guard,"  said  Mr.  Wentworth  again.  Then  he  turned 
on  his  heel  and  walked  to  the  corner  of  the  building, 
where,  pausing  for  an  instant,  he  looked  up  at  the  group 
on  the  roof  and  dropped  his  left  eyelid  significantly. 
Then,  whistling  a  popular  melody  and  cutting  the  tops 
of  the  beachgrass  clumps  with  his  cane,  he  turned  the 
corner  and  disappeared. 

Captain  Noah  did  not  see  the  wink  at  the  corner;  in 
fact,  he  did  not  notice  the  disappearance.  The  prompt 
ness  with  which  the  dog  had  obeyed  pleased  him  and  he 
was  regarding  the  animal  with  a  growing  respect. 

"Sho!"  he  exclaimed.  "Takes  orders  like  a  second 
mate,  don't  he?  I  declare,  he's  more  of  a  dog  than  I 
thought  he  was.  Had  him  quite  a  spell,  have  you,  Mis 
ter?"  Then,  hearing  no  reply,  he  turned.  "Why, 
where's  he  gone  to?"  he  demanded. 

The  talkative  workman  answered.  "Gone  to  hunt  up 
Mr.  Clifford,  I  guess  likely,"  he  said. 

"Sho!     Why,  I  told  him  Mr.  Clifford  wasn't  there." 

78 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

He  ran  over  to  the  corner  and  called:  "Hi,  Mr. — 
What's-your-name — Mr.  Wentworth!"  But  Mr.  Went- 
worth  was  out  of  sight  and,  apparently,  out  of  hearing. 
So  he  returned  to  the  front  again. 

"Say,"  he  said,  addressing  the  group  on  the  roof,  "I 
can't  wait  any  longer.  If  Mr.  Clifford  comes  back  afore 
dinner  time  tell  him  Cap'n  Newcomb,  Cap'n  Noah  New- 
comb,  was  here  and  will  see  him  at  the  hotel.  Get  the 
name  straight,  now — Noah  Newcomb.  He'll  remember, 
I  cal'late.  I —  Here,  you  dog,  get  out  of  my  way,  will 
you?" 

But  the  dog  seemed  to  have  no  idea  whatever  of  get 
ting  out  of  his  way.  As  the  captain  approached  the  car 
the  animal  stood  in  front  of  him.  The  captain  stepped 
to  one  side  and  the  dog  stepped  likewise.  Captain  Noah 
raised  his  foot  to  put  it  upon  the  auto's  step.  The  dog 
raised  his  head  and  opened  his  mouth,  displaying  a  beau 
tiful  set  of  teeth. 

"Why,  what  ails  the  critter?"  demanded  Noah.  "Hey, 
you,  Sport !  Clear  out,  will  you  ?" 

Sport's  answer  was  a  further  display  of  teeth.  From 
behind  the  teeth  came  a  menacing  rumble,  like  the  sound 
of  moving  something  heavy  in  a  cellar. 

"Well,  I  swan  to  man!"  exclaimed  the  captain.  "I 
do  believe  he  ain't  goin'  to  let  me  get  in  my  own  car. 
Here,  Mr. " 

He  had  turned  and  had  raised  his  voice,  intending  to 
summon  the  dog's  owner.  But  just  then  another  giggle 
came  from  the  roof.  And  that  giggle  brought  enlight 
enment  to  his  mind. 

Wentworth  had  ordered  the  dog  to  "guard"  the  car. 

79 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

After  giving  that  order  he  had  walked  away.  The  dog 
was  guarding  the  car.  The  group  of  workmen  on  the 
roof  had  stopped  working  and  were  watching.  Nine 
chances  out  of  ten  Wentworth  also  was  watching  some 
where.  The  joke  was  on  him,  Noah  Newcomb,  and  they 
were  watching  to  see  the  fun. 

Captain  Noah  looked  at  Sport  and  rubbed  his  chin. 
Sport  showed  his  teeth  and  growled.  Another  giggle 
sounded  above. 

For  perhaps  a  minute  the  captain  stood  there  seeking 
ways  and  means.  He  could  go  into  the  building,  find 
Wentworth  and  make  the  latter  call  off  his  dog — that 
he  could  do,  of  course;  and,  also,  he  inwardly  vowed, 
that  he  would  not  do.  Slowly  he  rubbed  his  chin. 

Then,  suddenly  turning,  he  walked  to  the  open  door 
of  the  engine  room  and  entered.  When  he  came  out  he 
was  holding  the  nozzle  of  the  fire  hose  in  his  hands  and 
the  hose  itself  was  unwinding  from  the  reel  as  he  walked. 
He  walked  on  until  the  hose  was  unwound  its  entire 
length.  Then  he  laid  the  nozzle  upon  the  ground  and 
turned  again  toward  the  door  of  the  engine  house.  The 
group  on  the  roof  had  watched  this  performance  with 
astonished  interest. 

"Hi!"  cried  one,  the  one  who  had  done  all  the  talk 
ing.  "Hi,  Mister,  what  are  you  goin'  to  do  with  that 
hose?" 

Captain  Noah,  who  was  humming  a  hymn,  looked  up. 

"I  was  just  noticin'  how  dusty  my  auto'd  got  this 
morninV  he  cried.  "Cal'late  I'll  wash  off  a  little  of  it; 
'twon't  do  any  harm." 

80 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

He  walked  into  the  engine  house,  humming.  "Land 
ahead,  its  fruits  are  wavin'." 

A  moment  later  the  water  spurted  from  the  nozzle  of 
the  hose,  tearing  a  hole  in  the  sand  and  sending  the 
pebbles  flying.  The  captain  reappeared.  Stooping,  he 
picked  up  the  nozzle;  the  force  of  water  was  so  great 
that  he  was  obliged  to  hold  on  with  all  his  strength. 

"  'Drop  the  anchor,  furl  the  sail/  "  hummed  Captain 
Noah.  He  turned  the  stream  of  water  in  the  direction 
of  his  car.  It  struck  the  road  just  behind  the  rear 
wheels.  The  flying  mud  and  spray  spattered  about 
Sport's  clipped  ears.  The  dog  closed  his  mouth  and 
swallowed  uneasily;  nevertheless,  he  still  maintained  his 
position. 

"  'Drop  the  anchor,  furl  the  sail/  "  sang  the  captain. 
The  stream  of  water  from  the  hose  moved  close  to  the 
rear  tires. 

Then  a  window  on  the  second  story  of  the  cold-storage 
building  was  thrown  up  and  a  voice  called: 

"Here!    What  are  you  doing?" 

Captain  Noah  did  not  appear  to  hear.  He  sang  on: 
"  'We  are  safe  within  the  vail/  " 

"Here !  D nation  !  What  are  you  doing  ?  Don't 

turn  that  hose  on  my  dog.  You'll  kill  him." 

The  captain  turned  his  head.  "Eh?"  he  queried. 
"Who's  that?  Oh,  it's  you,  Mr.  What's-your-name. 
Yes,  yes.  Been  lookin'  over  the  plant,  have  you?  In- 
terestin'  kind  of  place,  ain't  it?" 

Mr.  Wentworth's  usually  placid  countenance  was  now 
anything  but  that. 

81 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

"What  the  devil  are  you  doing?"  he  demanded.  "Do 
you  want  to  kill  my  dog  ?" 

"Kill  your  dog?     What  dog?" 

"What  dog!  Why,  my  dog  there.  Haven't  you  got 
any  sense?  If  that  water  hits  him  there's  force  enough 
to  kill  him." 

"Oh,  no,  no!  I  guess  not.  I  was  just  cal'latin'  to 
wash  my  car.  He'd  get  out  of  the  way  afore  the  water 
hit  him.  You  just  watch  now  and  see  if  he  wouldn't." 

"Stop!     Don't  point  it  at  him." 

"Well,  just  as  you  say.  Better  call  him  off,  then, 
hadn't  you?  He's  right  in  the  way  and  accidents  do 
happen,  sometimes." 

Someone  on  the  roof  burst  into  a  roar  of  laughter. 
Mr.  Wentworth  looked  as  if  he  would  have  enjoyed 
murdering  a  certain  individual.  The  captain,  serenely 
innocent  and  unconscious,  began  another  hymn. 

"  'These  are  they  that  have  come  out  of  great  tribu 
lation.'  " 

"Sport,"  ordered  Wentworth,  "come  here." 

Sport,  who  had  been  eyeing  the  hose  with  sidelong 
glances,  needed  no  second  command.  He  left  his  sentry 
post  before  the  auto's  step  and  dashed  over  beneath  the 
window  from  which  his  master  leaned. 

"Come  here,  you  fool !"  shouted  Wentworth.  The  dog 
ran  around  the  corner  of  the  building.  Captain  Noah 
sighed. 

"After  all,"  he  said  aloud,  "I  don't  know's  'tain't 
kind  of  foolish  for  me  to  wash  this  car.  Might  just  as 
well  have  it  done  at  the  garage." 

82 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

He  tossed  the  streaming  nozzle  from  him,  climbed 
into  the  car  and  pressed  the  starting  button. 

"Just  shut  that  water  off,  one  of  you,  please,"  he  said, 
"when  you  get  time.  Don't  forget  to  tell  Mr.  Clifford 
I  was  here.  Good  mornin'.  Mornin',  Mr.  Wentworth." 

During  the  ride  up  to  the  village  he  chuckled  more 
than  once.  When  he  entered  the  front  hall  of  the  Man 
sion  House  he  was  still  chuckling.  Mrs.  Hobbs,  in  spite 
of  Ethelinda's  unflattering  opinion  of  the  captain's  sanity, 
was  glad  to  see  him. 

"Real  glad  to  have  you  back,  Cap'n  Newcomb,"  she 
said.  "Are  you  goin'  to  stay  with  us  for  a  spell  ?  Would 
you  like  your  old  room  ?  It's  empty." 

Captain  Noah  replied  that  he  didn't  know  how  long  he 
should  stay.  "Maybe  quite  a  spell,  maybe  only  this 
afternoon,"  he  said.  "If,  with  that  understanding  you'd 
be  willin'  to  give  me  a  room  I'd  like  to  have  it  fust-rate. 
Where's  Mr.  Clifford;  is  he  'round?" 

It  developed  that  Mr.  Clifford  had  left  the  hotel  only 
a  few  minutes  before  Captain  Newcomb's  arrival.  He 
had  been  down  at  the  cold-storage  plant  in  the  morning, 
as  usual,  but  had  come  back  unexpectedly,  asked  for  and 
eaten  an  early  luncheon,  and  had  taken  the  eleven  o'clock 
train — for  Provincetown,  Mrs.  Hobbs  believed. 

The  captain  was  disappointed;  he  had  wished  to  see 
Clifford.  However,  as  he  could  not  see  him  until  eve 
ning,  he  decided  to  make  the  best  of  it  and  asked  to  be 
shown  to  his  room. 

"You  tell  'em  to  leave  my  car  right  out  front  here," 
he  said.  "I'll  most  likely  be  usin'  it  again  pretty  soon." 

83 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

Alone  in  his  room,  he  took  from  his  pocket  a  crum 
pled  envelope  containing  a  letter.  Adjusting  his  spec 
tacles  he  read  the  letter  for  the  fourth  or  fifth  time. 

CAPTAIN  NOAH  NEWCOMB. 

DEAR  FRIEND:  I  take  my  Pen  in  hand  hoping  these  few 
Lines  will  find  you  the  same.  When  you  was  Here  you 
said  if  I  neded  you  to  Write.  I  don't  know  wether  I  nede 
you  or  not  but  sometimes  seems  as  if  I  did.  I  have  got 
some  things  on  my  Mind.  I  would  like  to  of  had  a  Chance 
to  talk  to  you  if  you  was  Here  but  I  guess  likely  you 
are  to  Busy  to  come.  So  I  shant  ask  you.  I  Hope  you 
are  first  rate  as  to  Helth.  I  am  to.  We  dident  have  much 
Snow  here  this  Winter  and  the  spring  is  coming  in  Good. 
Yours  truly, 

OBADIAH   B.   BURGESS. 

The  letter  was  dated  six  weeks  previously.  After  read 
ing  it  he  sat  for  a  moment  in  thought,  then,  shaking  his 
head  as  one  who  gives  up  trying  to  guess  a  conundrum, 
he  put  it  back  in  his  pocket,  and,  shortly  afterward,  went 
down  to  luncheon.  Again  he  regretted  Irving  Clifford's 
absence.  Before  calling  upon  his  former  cook  the  cap 
tain  had  hoped,  by  asking  some  judicious  questions,  to 
learn  a  little  of  what  had  transpired  at  the  "Badscom 
place"  during  his  absence.  By  getting  an  outside  opin 
ion  concerning  these  happenings  and  then  hearing  Oba- 
diah's  own  story  of  them  Captain  Noah  believed  he 
might  be  in  a  better  position  to  judge  that  which  Mr. 
Burgess  himself  seemed  unable  to  decide — namely, 
whether  or  not  the  latter  needed  his  friend's  counsel  and 
help.  And  the  captain,  having  some  knowledge  of  char- 

84 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

acter,  believed  Irving  Clifford's  opinion  would  have  been 
the  best  obtainable.  He  had  a  mind  to  wait  for  that 
opinion,  even  if  waiting  entailed  delaying  his  call  upon 
Obadiah  until  the  following  morning. 


CHAPTER  VII 

BUT  before  luncheon  was  over  he  changed  his  mind. 
The  only  one  of  the  regular  boarders  present  at 
that  meal  was  Mr.  Laban  Bassett.  A  conversa 
tion  between  EtheLnda  and  "Uncle  Labe"  attracted  the 
captain's  attention. 

"I  see  Joe  Kenney  goin'  down  street  a  spell  ago,  Mr. 
Bassett,"  said  Ethelinda.  "He  had  his  paintin'  tools 
with  him.  Guess  likely  he's  goin'  to  make  another  pic 
ture  of  somebody's  cow  or  somethin'.  He,  he!" 

Uncle  Labe  sniffed  disgust. 

"Pesky  foolishness !"  he  declared.  "If  I  was  his  aunt 
I  wouldn't  let  him  waste  his  time  that  way.  If  he  wants 
to  paint  why  don't  he  paint  houses  or  whitewash  fences 
or  somethin'?  There'd  be  some  sense  to  that." 

Ethelinda  tossed  her  head.  Her  opinion  of  art  and 
artists  was  much  like  Mr.  Bassett's,  but  she  liked  to 
tease  the  old  man. 

"Oh,  I  don't  know,"  she  said;  "some  of  the  things 
Joe  Kenney  paints  are  awful  pretty.  I  saw  a  picture  of 
the  bay  that  he  done  t'other  day  and  'twas  fine.  So  bright 
and  gay,  sort  of.  Hang  one  of  them  pictures  up  on  the 
wall  and  you  couldn't  look  at  nothin'  else." 

86 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

"Humph!  I  cal'late  you  couldn't;  lookin'  at  that 
would  put  your  eyes  out.  And  as  for  the  crayon  en 
largements  he  does — my  soul!  Did  you  see  the  one  he 
done  of  Obadiah  Burgess  himself?  Well,  I  did.  Frank 
Hammond  had  it  down  in  his  store,  puttin'  a  frame  onto 
it.  Didn't  look  no  more  like  Burgess  than — than  a  mon 
key  does — or  I  do — or  anything.  A  sight,  I  called  it. 
And  why  Mr.  Burgess  lets  him  live  there  everybody  says 
is  a  mystery.  Great  hulkin'  feller  like  him.  I  hear  he 
don't  pay  a  cent  of  board." 

"Why  should  he?  He's  Mrs.  Mayo's  nephew,  and 
they  tell  me  he's  lived  with  her  ever  since  his  ma  died. 
So  when  she  came  to  live  along  of  Mr.  Burgess  and 
keep  house  for  him  'twas  natural  enough  for  Joe  to 
come,  too.  Seems  that  way  to  me,  anyhow." 

"Well,  what  did  Obadiah  Burgess  need  a  housekeeper 
for,  anyway?  Wan't  nobody  to  housekeep  for  but  just 
he,  himself." 

Before  Ethelinda  could  reply  Captain  Noah  asked  a 
question. 

"What  Burgess  is  this  you're  talkin'  about  ?"  he  asked. 
"The  one  that  had  the — what  do  you  call  it? — Badscom 
place  left  him?" 

"That's  the  one.    Know  him,  do  you,  Cap'n?" 

"Yes,  pretty  well.  You  say  he's  got  a  housekeeper? 
A  reg'lar  one,  that  stays  there  all  the  time?" 

"Sartin.  And  her  nephew,  Joe  Kenney,  stays  there, 
too." 

"What  sort  of  woman  is  she?  Come  from  round  here, 
did  she?" 

"No;   somebody  Balaam  Griggs   fetched  from  down 

87 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

Cape  Ann  way.  She's  some  relation  of  Balaam's,  they 
tell  me.  As  for  the  sort  of  woman  she  is — well,  she 
seems  to  be  a  good  enough  sort.  I  never  heard  nothin' 
against  her,  as  I  know  of." 

"She's  real  sort  of  good-lookin',  I  think,"  put  in 
Ethelinda.  "  'Course  she's  old " 

"She  ain't  neither,"  interrupted  Uncle  Labe.  "Ain't 
more'n  forty,  I  bet  you." 

"Forty!    Well,  ain't  that  old,  for  mercy  sakes?" 

"Old!  Is  the  gal  crazy?  I'm  sev —  Well,  I'm  more'n 
forty,  and  I  don't  call  myself  old  yet." 

"How  long  has  Obe — Mr.  Burgess,  I  mean — had  this 
housekeeper  woman  there?"  asked  the  captain,  who  was 
not  particularly  interested  in  the  age  question.  Ethelinda 
answered. 

"Oh,  most  two  months  now,"  she  said.  "Folks  don't 
know  but  he  may  be  cal'latin'  to  marry  her;  good  many 
rich  folks  do  marry  their  housekeepers,  you  know.  And 
they  say  Mr.  Burgess  has  got  lots  of  money." 

Captain  Noah  somehow  seemed  not  to  like  this  re 
mark.  "Humph !"  he  grunted,  and  frowned. 

"She  and  that  Joe  Kenney  nephew  of  hers  came  to 
Burgess's  just  afore  Mr.  Wentworth  did,"  went  on  Uncle 
Labe.  "When  Burgess  told  Balaam  that  Mr.  Wentworth 
was  comin'  to  live  with  him " 

"Who  was  comin'?"  The  captain  turned  in  his  chair. 
"Who  was  comin'  to  live  with  Obe  Burgess?"  he  de 
manded. 

"Why,  Mr.  Wentworth,  Mr.  Calvin  Wentworth,  of 
New  York.  He's  some  sort  of  relation — cousin  or  some- 
thin'  of  Obadiah's,  seems  so.  Seems  he's  been  ailin'  for 

88 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

a  long  spell  and  the  doctors  said  Fifth  Avenue  and  the 
like  of  that  would  be  the  death  of  him  if  he  stayed  there 
and  he'd  have  to  go  to  the  country.  So " 

"So  he  came,"  finished  Ethelinda,  evidently  greatly 
excited  at  the  mention  of  the  Wentworth  name.  "Mr. 
Griggs  says  he's  awful  rich  and  he's  goin'  to  leave  every 
thing  to  Mr.  Burgess  when  he  dies — and  he's  liable  to 
die  'most  any  time.  I  heard  him  tell  Mis'  Hobbs  he  was 
expectin'  it  any  minute.  And " 

"What  sort  of  a  lookin'  feller  is  he?"  interrupted 
Noah. 

"Oh,  he's  an  awful  fine  man.  He's  just  my  idea  of  a 
gentleman,  same  as  you  read  about  in  books.  He's  got  a 
mustache  just  like  that  'Count  Somebody-or-other'  that 
was  in  the  movin'  pitchers  last  week.  And  he  talks  so 
sort  of  slow  and — and — and  proud,  as  you  might  say. 
And  he  'most  generally  carries  a  cane ;  and " 

"Heave  to  a  minute.  Does  he  own  a  dog;  a  kind  of 
pepper-and-salt  critter,  with  a  jaw  like  a  muskrat  trap?" 

"He's  got  a  full-breeded  Boston  bull  terrier.  Its  name 
is  Sport.  I  just  love  that  dog." 

"Humph !  so  do  I.  And  this  Wentworth  man  is  livin' 
at  Obe  Burgess' ;  livin'  there  for  keeps  ?" 

"Um-hm.  .  .  .  Why,  where  you  goin'?  You  ain't 
through,  are  you?  You  ain't  had  your  pie  yet." 

But  Captain  Noah  did  not  wait  for  pie.  He  strode 
out  of  the  room.  A  few  minutes  later  he  was  on  his 
way  to  the  Badscom  place. 

The  house  and  its  surroundings  were  much  improved 
since  he  saw  them  last.  The  missing  shingles  had  been 
replaced,  the  loose  blinds  rehung  and  the  house  and  out- 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

buildings  whitewashed.  The  fence  had  its  full  comple 
ment  of  pickets  and  it,  too,  was  spotlessly  white.  The 
captain  entered  the  front  gate  and  walked  around  to  the 
side  door.  Being  a  Cape  Codder  by  birth  and  early 
breeding,  he  had  an  instinctive  repugnance  to  front 
doors. 

The  door  was  opened,  in  answer  to  his  knock,  by  a 
woman.  She  was  a  rather  plump,  matronly  sort  of 
woman,  plainly  dressed  and  wearing  a  white  apron.  The 
apron  was  spotlessly  clean.  She  looked  the  captain  over 
and  waited  for  him  to  speak. 

"Good  afternoon,  ma'am/'  he  said.  "This  is  where 
Mr.  Burgess  lives,  ain't  it?" 

He  knew  it  was,  of  course,  but  the  intentness  of  the 
woman's  gaze  disconcerted  him  the  least  bit,  which  was 
unusual,  for,  generally  speaking,  it  took  a  good  deal  to 
disconcert  Captain  Noah  Newcomb. 

The  woman  nodded. 

"Yes,"  she  said ;  "Mr.  Burgess  lives  here." 

Captain  Noah  waited  for  her  to  say  whether  or  not 
Obadiah  was  in.  As  she  did  not,  nor  in  fact  anything 
more,  he  was  obliged  to  ask. 

"Is — er — is  he  to  home?"  he  inquired. 

"No." 

"Sho !    Liable  to  be  gone  long,  do  you  think,  ma'am  ?" 

"I  can't  tell  you.  He  didn't  say  how  long  he'd  be 
gone." 

The  captain  shifted  his  feet  uneasily.  He  was  getting 
replies  to  his  questions,  but  he  was  not  getting  anything 
more.  On  the  whole,  he  felt  inclined  to  give  it  up  for 
the  present. 

90 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

"Humph!  Well,  all  right,  ma'am,"  he  said,  turning 
away.  "I'll  see  him  later,  I  presume  likely." 

The  woman  still  looked  at  him  intently.  She  seemed 
to  be  inwardly  debating  some  question  or  other.  He 
had  taken  perhaps  three  steps  toward  the  corner  when 
she  spoke  again. 

"Just  a  minute,  if  you  don't  mind,"  she  said.  "Of 
course  this  isn't  really  any  of  my  affairs,  but  Mr.  Bur 
gess  asked  my  opinion  about  it  and  I  gave  it  to  him.  To 
be  real  up  and  down  honest,  I  think  he's  gone  out  so  as 
not  to  see  you  when  you  came." 

Captain  Noah  stared  at  her  in  amazement. 

"Gone  out?"  he  repeated.  "He's  gone  out  so  as  not 
to  see — me?" 

"Yes.  He  didn't  say  so,  but  I  imagine  that's  it.  He 
has  made  up  his  mind  not  to  take  it." 

"Not  to  take  it?    Take  what?" 

"Why,  the  land — the  property,  whatever  it  is  you've 
got.  He  says  he  told  you  he'd  got  all  the  property  he 
wanted,  says  he  told  you  that  at  the  very  beginnin'.  I 
suppose  it's  a  part  of  your  business  to  keep  on  tryin', 
but,  honest,  it  does  put  me  out  of  patience  sometimes  to 
see  how  you  people  pester  and  torment  the  poor  man. 
Between  agents  and  peddlers  and  promoters  and " 

"Now — now — now,"  broke  in  the  captain,  incoherent  in 
his  astonishment.  "Now — now — hold  on  a  minute, 
ma'am,  if  you'll  just  please.  I  ain't  a  peddler.  I  ain't 
got  any  land  to  sell.  I'm  an  old  friend  of  Obadiah's 
and  I've  come  here  to  see  him,  that's  all.  That's  all,  I 
give  you  my  word." 

7  91 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

Her  gaze  was  just  as  intent  as  ever,  but  there  was  a 
shade  of  doubt  in  her  voice  when  she  spoke. 

"Ain't  you  the  man  from  the  Indian  Hill  Develop 
ment  Company  over  at  Mashpee?"  she  asked. 

"Not  guilty.  Never  heard  of  the — what  is  it?  Injun 
Hill  crowd — in  my  life.  I'm  an  old  shipmate  of  Mr.  Bur 
gess'.  He  used  to  sail  cook  for  me  one  time.  My  name's 
Newcomb — Noah  Newcomb — and " 

But  now  the  woman  interrupted  him.  Her  expression 
changed  entirely. 

"Not  Cap'n  Noah  Newcomb  of  Portland?"  she  cried. 

"That's  the  one,  ma'am." 

"Mercy  on  us !  And  I've  been  talkin*  to  you  as  if  I'd 
caught  you  breakin'  into  the  henhouse!  I  don't  know 
what  you  must  think  of  me.  Come  right  in,  Cap'n  New- 
comb.  I'm  sure  Mr.  Burgess'll  be  back  pretty  soon. 
Yes,  come  right  in  and  wait.  I'm  Mrs.  Mayo,  the  house 
keeper.  Dear !  dear !  and  how  I  did  talk  to  you !" 
a  Two  minutes  later  the  captain  was  seated  in  the 
rocker  in  the  Burgess  sitting  room.  Mrs.  Mayo,  the 
housekeeper,  was  still  apologizing. 

"I  ought  to  have  known,  I  suppose,"  she  said,  "but 
maybe  I  had  a  little  mite  of  excuse.  I  hope  I  did,  any 
how.  YouVe  no  idea,  Cap'n  Newcomb,  how  Mr.  Bur 
gess  is  plagued  and  pestered  by  people  who  want  him  to 
buy  somethin'  or  take  shares  in  something  or  subscribe 
to  somethin'.  You've  no  idea  of  it,  you  can't  have." 

Captain  Noah  nodded. 

"I  can  imagine  it,"  he  said.  "Where  the  carcass  is 
the — er — er — dogfish  are  gathered  together.  I  don't 

92 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

know's  'dogfish'  is  the  right  word,  exactly,  but  maybe 
you  understand  what  I  mean,  ma'am." 

There  was  just  a  hint  of  extra  emphasis  in  the  last 
sentence,  but  the  housekeeper  did  not  seem  to  notice  it. 

"Yes,  I  know  what  you  mean,"  she  said.  "The  papers 
here  on  the  Cape  have  had  a  lot  to  say  about  Mr.  Bur 
gess  fallin'  heir  to  this  place  and  a  lot  of  money,  and 
consequently  there's  a  perfect  swarm  of  those  'dogfish,' 
as  you  call  'em,  schoolin'  around  the  poor  man  about 
every  minute  of  the  day.  If  Mr.  Burgess  would  only 
say  no  once  in  a  while — if  he'd  only  put  his  foot  down 
and  keep  it  down — but  I'm  afraid  he  don't  know  how  to 
do  that  very  well.  It's  so  easy  to  take  advantage  of  him." 

"Is  it?"  asked  the  captain,  innocently.  He  would  like 
to  have  added,  "Do  you  find  it  so?"  but  he  thought  it 
better  policy  to  wait.  Besides,  this  woman  puzzled  him. 
She  was  not  the  sort  of  woman  he  expected  to  find 
there,  not  the  sort  he  would  have  expected  Balaam  Griggs 
to  provide.  That  is,  she  did  not  look  like  that  sort  of 
woman.  She  looked  and  spoke  like  a  sensible,  straight 
forward  New  England  matron,  comfortable,  competent, 
honest  and  aboveboard.  She  did  not  act  or  appear  like 
a  schemer,  nor  an  agent  of  schemers.  Appearances,  how 
ever,  are  often  deceitful,  and  the  captain,  being  a  bach 
elor,  was  especially  distrustful  of  feminine  appearances. 
And  there  was  one  point  in  which  Ethelinda  was  right; 
Mrs.  Mayo  was  good-looking  for  her  age.  This,  of 
itself,  was  suspicious. 

The  lady  went  on.  "I  hope  you  won't  think  I'm  talk 
ing  about  Mr.  Burgess  behind  his  back,"  she  said.  "I 
don't  mean  to  run  him  down,  that's  sartin.  He's  as 

93 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

good-hearted,  well-meanin'  a  soul  as  ever  I  saw  in  my 
life.  It's  because  he  is  so  good  and  kind  that  I  hate  to 
see  him  taken  advantage  of  and  I  try  to  save  him  from 
it  all  I  can.  Last  night  he  was  tellin'  me  he  met  a  man 
— this  Indian  Hill  development  man — down  street  some- 
wheres,  at  the  club  or  the  post  office  or  some  such  place 
— and  the  man  got  after  him  to  buy  some  land  the  com 
pany  had.  Mr.  Burgess  didn't  want  to  buy  the  land, 
he  didn't  want  even  to  hear  about  it,  but  the  man  kept 
talkin'  and  talkin'  and  finally  said  he'd  be  around  here 
after  dinner  today  to  talk  some  more.  Mr.  Burgess  was 
real  worried,  said  he  didn't  want  to  see  him  and  how 
could  he  get  out  of  it  and  all  that,  so  I  told  him  I'd  help 
him  out.  Says  I,  'You  go  and  take  a  walk  and  when 
the  man  comes  I'll  send  him  to  the  right-about-face  in 
a  hurry.  What's  he  look  like?'  Well,  he  said  he  was  a 
big  man  with  a  beard,  and  so  when  you  came  knockin' 
at  the  door,  I —  Well,  I  do  hope  you'll  forgive  me, 
Cap'n  Newcomb." 

"Oh,  I'll  forgive  you,  Mrs.— Mrs. " 

"Mayo.    Melissa  Mayo,  my  name  is." 

"Yes,  yes,  I  remember  you  said  'twas  Mayo.  So 
you're  keepin'  house  for  Obadiah  now;  eh,  ma'am?" 

"Yes.     I'm  here  nearly  two  months." 

"Did  you  use  to  live  on  Cape  Cod;  after  you  came 
here,  I  mean?" 

"No,  my  home  used  to  be  on  Cape  Ann,  down  near 
Pigeon  Cove.  I  lived  there  when  my  husband  was  alive 
and,  after  that,  with  my  sister  and  her  boy.  She  was  a 
widow,  too." 

"Pigeon  Cove.     Yes,  yes.     That's  quite  a  ways  off 

94 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

from  Trumet.  How  did  you  happen  to  hear  of  Obadiah's 
needin'  a  housekeeper?  Used  to  know  him  afore,  did 
you?" 

For  the  first  time  the  housekeeper's  pleasant,  whole 
some  face  clouded.  It  was  but  a  slight  cloud,  neverthe 
less  Captain  Noah,  who  was  on  the  lookout  for  weather 
symptoms,  noticed  it. 

"No,"  she  said,  "I  never  knew  Mr.  Burgess  before  I 
came  here."  She  paused,  and  then  added,  "I  got  the 
position  through  Mr.  Griggs — Mr.  Balaam  Griggs,  here 
in  Trumet.  Mr.  Griggs  is  a  sort  of  relation,  a  second 
cousin  of  mine." 

"I  see,  I  see.  I  met  this  Mr.  Griggs  last  time  I  was 
down  here.  He  and  Obadiah  are  great  friends,  I  under 
stand." 

The  cloud  upon  the  housekeeper's  face  had  not  lifted. 

"Yes,"  she  said,  simply,  but  made  no  further  com 
ment.  A  moment  later  she  added,  "Perhaps  you'll  ex 
cuse  me  now,  Cap'n  Newcomb.  I've  got  some  bakin*  in 
the  oven  and  I  presume  likely  I  ought  to  look  at  it. 
Make  yourself  right  at  home.  Mr.  Burgess'll  be  here  in 
a  little  while,  I'm  sure." 

Without  waiting  to  receive  his  permission  she  left  the 
room.  Captain  Noah,  rising,  walked  about  the  apart 
ment  on  a  tour  of  inspection.  It  was  neatness  itself,  no 
dust  anywhere,  windowpanes  shiningly  transparent,  no 
lint  or  threads  upon  the  carpet,  no  crumpled  newspapers 
upon  the  table,  each  picture  hanging  perfectly  straight. 

Speaking  of  pictures,  there  was  one  which  the  visitor 
found  interesting.  It  was  a  crayon  portrait  of — of — 
yes,  of  Obadiah  Burgess  himself.  The  captain  decided 

95 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

it  must  be  intended  for  Obadiah,  because  he  could  think 
of  no  one  else  whose  likeness  it  could  be.  And,  besides, 
there  was  a  sort  of  far-off  resemblance  to  the  ex-cook  in 
the  petrified  image  hemmed  in  by  the  ornate  gilt  frame. 
If  Obadiah  had  undergone  a  long,  wasting  illness  and 
had  then  slowly  and  painfully  ossified  he  might  look 
like  this,  perhaps.  The  name  of  the  criminal  responsible 
for  the  outrage  was  printed  in  the  corner  of  the  canvas 
and  Captain  Noah,  bending  to  read,  read,  "J.  Kenney, 
Trumet."  Then  he  remembered;  "J.  Kenney"  must  be 
"Joe  Kenney,"  the  housekeeper's  nephew,  the  young  fel 
low  who,  so  Uncle  Labe  and  Ethelinda  had  said,  was 
living  with  his  aunt  at  the  Badscom  place.  Mr.  Bassett 
had  spoken  of  a  "crayon  enlargement." 

He  was  still  looking  at  the  picture  when  he  heard 
someone  enter  the  room  behind  him.  Turning  he  faced 
Mr.  Burgess  himself.  And  the  Burgess  eyes  and  mouth 
opened  as  they  had  that  night  at  the  post  office. 

"Why— why,  Cap'n  Noah !"  gasped  Obadiah. 

The  captain  put  out  his  hand. 

"Yes,  Obe,"  he  said;  "here  I  am.  Told  you  all  you 
had  to  do  was  set  the  distress  signal  and  I'd  get  here 
soon  as  I  could.  I'd  have  been  here  a  month  ago  only 
I  didn't  get  your  letter.  Went  down  to  Porto  Rico  on 
a  sort  of  farewell  business  trip  and  only  been  home  a 
fortni't.  Had  to  settle  up  matters  with  the  old  Clay 
Line  and  then  I  came  to  you.  I'm  through  with  'em 
for  keeps  now;  retired  millionaire,  I  am,  like  yourself. 
Only  one  thing  lackin'  to  make  me  so — that's  the  million. 
.  .  .  Well,  Obe,  what's  the  matter  2  Ain't  you  glad  to 
see  me?" 

96 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

Mr.  Burgess,  who  had  been  standing  staring  at  his 
former  skipper,  a  curious  expression  on  his  face,  seemed 
suddenly  to  wake  up.  He  took  the  proffered  hand  and 
shook  it. 

"Yes,  yes,  course  I'm  glad  to  see  you,  Cap'n  Noah," 
he  declared.  "Course  I  b-b-be.  'Tain't  likely  I  wouldn't 
be  glad  to  see  you,  is  it  ?  Sit  d-down,  won't  you  ?" 

Captain  Noah  grinned. 

"Why,  yes,"  he  said,  "I  think  maybe  I  will  set  down, 
long  as  you're  so  pressin'  about  it.  Considerin'  that  I've 
been  cruisin'  all  the  way  from  the  State  of  Maine  to  see 
you,  I  guess  likely  I'll  set  a  spell  after  I've  got  here. 
Better  set  down  yourself,  hadn't  you  ?" 

Obadiah,  thus  urged,  sat.    His  friend  looked  at  him. 

"Well,  Obe,"  he  said,  "you  sent  for  me  and  I  have 
come,  as  the  feller  in  the  old  theater  show  used  to  say. 
What's  the  matter?  What's  wrong?" 

Mr.  Burgess  shuffled  his  feet.  "Why— why,  Cap'n," 
'he  said,  "I  guess  there  ain't  nothin'  wrong.  I  guess  likely 
there  ain't.  I'm  real  glad  t-t-to  see  you,  I  am  so.  Coin' 
t-t-to  stay  a  spell,  be  you  ?  How's  things  up  to  P-P-Port- 
land?" 

The  captain  smiled.  "Things  up  to  Portland  are  up 
there,"  he  said.  "Suppose  we  don't  bother  'em  for  the 
present.  There's  enough  down  here  in  Trumet  for  us 
to  talk  about,  I  should  think.  Come,  come,  Obe!  you 
wrote  me  you  needed  me.  What  do  you  need  me  for?" 

More  foot  shufflings.  Obadiah  seemed  oddly  embar 
rassed.  His  friend's  questions  and  scrutiny  were  evi 
dently  making  him  very  uneasy. 

"Why — why — why,  Cap'n  Noah,"  he  said,  "I  guess  I 

97 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

don't  want  you  for  nothin'.     That  is,  I  mean  I  don't 
need  you.    You  see — you  see " 

"Oh,  yes,  I  see.  You  don't  need  me  and  that's  why 
you  wrote  you  did.  That's  about  as  plain  to  see  as  a 
flea's  eyebrow  is  to  a  blind  man." 

Obadiah's  uneasiness  increased.  "I — I  didn't  write 
you  that — that  I  needed  you  for  sartin,"  he  said.  "Course 
I'm  awful  glad  to  see  you,  you  know  that,  Cap'n  Noah. 
'Tain't  that  I  ain't  glad  to  see  you,  b-b-but— but " 

The  captain  held  up  his  hand.  "Never  mind,  Obe," 
he  said.  "Let  it  stand  for  a  minute.  Tell  me  about 
yourself  and  your  doin's  here.  You've  got  a  house 
keeper,  I  see.  Seems  like  a  capable  woman.  How  long 
have  you  had  her?  Where'd  she  come  from?" 

The  ex-cook,  evidently  glad  of  the  opportunity  to 
evade  further  questioning  concerning  his  letter,  began  to 
talk  volubly  of  the  housekeeper.  She  was  a  "real  smart" 
woman,  she  was  lively  as  a  cricket,  there  was  no  shift- 
lessness  where  she  was,  she  could  cook 

Captain  Noah  interrupted. 

"I  thought  you  was  goin'  to  do  your  own  cookin', 
Obadiah,"  he  said.  "And  most  of  your  own  housework ; 
that's  what  you  told  me  the  last  time  I  was  down  here." 

Obadiah  coughed,  cleared  his  throat,  and  shuffled  his 
feet  again. 

"Well,  I  was,"  he  said,  "but — but,  you  see,  after  we 
heard —  Well,  after  I  got  word  Calvin  was  comin', 
Balaam  he  thought  we'd  need  somebody,  so " 

'We'd  need  somebody?  Who  was  'we';  you  and  who 
else?" 

98 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

"\Vhy — why,  nobody.  Just  me  and — and  Balaam, 
that's  all." 

"Balaam?    Balaam  Griggs  doesn't  live  here,  does  he?" 

"No — no,  he  d-d-don't  live  here,  exactly,  but — but  he 
comes  in  so  often  and  helps  me  out  so  much  that — that 
seems  almost  as  if  he  was  one  of  the  family.  I  don't 
know's  you'll  understand  that,  Cap'n  Noah,  but " 

"Yes,  yes,  I  guess  I  can  understand  that  much  with 
out  callin'  in  the  schoolteacher.  Who's  Calvin  ?" 

"Why,  why,  he's  Calvin  Wentworth,  my  cousin  from 
New  York.  I  guess  most  likely  you  ain't  heard  about 
him,  Cap'n  Noah,  have  you?'* 

"No,  I  ain't  heard  much  about  him,  but  I  saw  a  little 
of  him  this  forenoon,  unless  I'm  mistaken.  Tell  me 
about  him.  How  did  he  come  here  ?" 

Calvin  Wentworth  was  a  third  cousin  of  Obadiah's. 
His  father  had  made  money  in  some  lucky  ventures 
many  years  before,  had  moved  to  New  York  and  made 
more.  He  died,  reported  to  be  worth  a  good  many  thou 
sand  dollars,  and  Calvin  was  his  only  heir.  Obadiah  and 
he  were  utter  strangers.  The  lives  the  two  lived  were 
as  wide  apart  as  the  poles.  Calvin  was  reported  to  be  a 
New  York  "swell."  Obadiah  was  a  sea-cook. 

"Land  sakes !"  exclaimed  Obadiah,  "I  never  thought 
of  seein'  him.  I'd  almost  forgot  there  was  such  a  rela 
tion  of  mine  in  creation.  And  then — and  then,  by  god- 
freys!  right  out  of  a  clear  sk-sk-sky,  as  you  might  say, 
sprouted  up  this  letter  of  his  sayin'  he  was  all  alone  in 
the  world  except  me,  and  his  health  was  'debilitated' — 
whatever  in  time  that  was — he  couldn't  live  but  a  year 
or  two  longer,  anyhow,  and  he  wanted  to  come  d-d-down 

99 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

to  Trumet  and  die  on  me,  so  to  speak.  Did  you  ever 
hear  such  a  thing  in  your  life?  What  did  I  want  any 
body  d-d-d-dyin'  on  me  for?  I  wasn't  no  hospital,  was 
I  ?  No,  nor  no  graveyard,  neither. 

"Soon's  I  fetched  my  breath  I  took  the  letter  over  to 
Balaam.  No,  come  to  think  of  it,  he  was  here  when  I 
got  it.  He  'most  always  is  here,  somehow.  The  amount 
of  meals  I've  provided  for " 

He  stopped,  looking  rather  foolish  and  startled  as  if 
he  had  said  more  than  he  intended.  Then  he  went  on 
with  his  story. 

"I  showed  the  letter  to  Balaam,"  he  said,  "and  when 
he  read  it  he  showed  me  a  part,  a  postage — no,  a  post 
script  part  that  I  hadn't  read.  In  the  postscript  Calvin 
says  he'd  made  up  his  mind,  he  bein'  all  alone  in  the 
world,  providin'  I  let  him  come  and  d-d-die  on  my 
hands  same  as  he  said,  to  make  a  will  in  my  favor,  leav- 
in'  all  he  had  to  me,  his  only  relation  and  dear  cousin. 

"Well,  sir!  somehow  or  'nother  that  postscript  made 
a  turrible  impression  on  Balaam.  He  asked  more'n  a 
deck  load  of  questions  about  how  rich  I  cal'lated  Cal 
vin  was  and  all.  I  didn't  know  how  rich  he  was,  but  I 
said  thirty  or  forty  thousand  anyhow.  He  ought  to  be 
worth  that,  even  if  he's  b-b-blowed  in  a  thousand  every 
year  of  the  fifteen  years  since  his  pa  died.  'Then/  says 
Balaam,  all  het  up  and  excited,  'you  must  t-t-take  him 
in  and  let  him  die  onto  you.  It'll  be  dum  good  business 
to  do  it/  'I  won't/  says  I,  right  up  and  down.  'By  god- 
freys,  I  won't!  S'pose  I'm  goin'  to  cook  his  meals? 
Didn't  I  g-g-give  up  goin'  to  sea  just  on  purpose  not  to 
cook  meals  for  other  folks?'  'But  he  won't  last  more'n 

100 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

a  year  or  two,  feeble  as  he  is,'  says  he,  'and  then  we — 
you,  I  mean — '11  get  the  thirty  thousand.  And  as  for 
cookin' — you  needn't  cook.  You  get  a  housekeeper  and 
let  her  d-d-do  it.  By  time!  I'll  get  one  for  you.  I've 
been  thinkin'  of  that  very  thing.  I  know  just  the  woman 
for  you.  I'll  write  her  today.' 

"I  vowed  he  shouldn't,  but  he  did.  And  that's  how 
Mrs.  Melissa  Mayo  came  here.  She's  a  relation  of  his; 
you  see " 

"Yes,  I  know ;  she  said  she  was.  She's  got  a  nephew, 
I  hear.  He's  livin'  here,  too,  ain't  he?" 

"Yes,  yes.    Who  told  you  that?    Did  she?" 

"No.  I  heard  somethin'  about  it  up  to  the  hotel. 
What  sort  of  a  man  is  the  nephew?" 

"He  ain't  a  man,  just  a  boy,  that's  all.  Ain't  eighteen 
yet." 

"What  does  he  do  for  a  livin'?  What's  he  workin' 
at?" 

"Well- — well,  he  ain't — er — he  ain't  exactly  workin'  at 
anything,  as  you  m-m-mum-might  say.  Not  just  now,  he 
ain't.  He's  a-a  painter,  a  hand  painter." 

"Hand  painter?    What  kind  of  a  critter's  that?" 

"Why,  he  paints  things  with  his  hands,  you  know." 

"With  his  hands?    Don't  he  use  a  brush?" 

"Course  he  does.  I  don't  mean  that.  I  mean  he — he 
hand-paints.  You've  heard  of  hand-paintin',  Cap't  Noah ; 
hand-painted  dishes  and  such.  Like  that,  he  is,  only  he 
d-d-don't  paint  dishes ;  he  paints  folks'  faces." 

The  captain  burst  into  a  laugh. 

"I  always  cal'lated  that  folks  who  had  paint  on  their 
faces  generally  put  it  there  themselves,"  he  said.  "Never 

101 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

mind,  Obe,  I  guess  I  know  what  you  mean.  He  did  that, 
didn't  he?"  pointing  to  the  ''crayon  enlargement"  on  the 
wall. 

Mr.  Burgess  regarded  the  "enlargement"  with  com 
placency,  not  to  say  pride. 

"Yes,"  he  answered,  "Joe  done  that.  It's  pretty  fine, 
too,  most  folks  think.  Know  who  'tis,  don't  ye,  Cap'n? 
What  do  you  say  to  that  for  a  picture,  eh  ?" 

Captain  Noah  regarded  the  work  of  art  solemnly. 
"I  wouldn't  dare  say  anything  to  it,  Obe,"  he  answered, 
with  feeling.  "Does — er — this  Joe  Kenney,  whatever 
his  name  is,  pay  you  much  board  ?" 

"Board?  No.  Course  he  d-d-don't  pay  board.  He's 
Melissa's  nephew ;  didn't  I  tell  you  ?" 

"Yes,  you  told  me.  .  .  .  Humph !  And  this  other  fel 
ler — your  Cousin  Calvin — he  don't  pay  any  board  either, 
does  he?" 

"No.  I  told  you  about  his  bein'  sick  and  comin'  down 
here  to " 

"Yes,  you  told  me.  Balaam  Griggs  don't  pay  for  the 
meals  he  gets  here  either,  does  he?" 

"Pay  for  'em!  Why,  how  you  talk,  Cap'n!  Why 
should  he  pay  for  'em?  I  ain't  runnin'  a  boardin'-house." 

"Ain't  you?  Well,  maybe  you  ain't,  Obe,  maybe  you 
ain't.  .  .  .  And  now  do  you  want  to  tell  me  why  you 
wrote  you  rather  guessed  you  needed  me  ?" 

The  troubled  look  returned  to  Mr.  Burgess*  face.  He 
tried  to  change  the  subject. 

"Land  sakes!"  he  exclaimed,  "I  ain't  asked  you  to 
have  a  smoke.  What  was  I  thinkin'  of?  Got  a  new 
box  of  them  Liberty  M-M-Maids,  Cap'n." 

102 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

"Keep  'em,"  ordered  Noah,  hastily.  ''I've  sworn  off 
smokin' — until  after  supper — today  I  have,  anyhow. 
Come,  Obadiah,  come !  What  was  it  you  wanted  to 
talk  to  me  about?" 

"Why — why,  'twan't  nothin',  Cap'n.  For  a  spell  I — I 
thought — I  thought  .  .  .  but  'tain't  nothin'.  I'm  sorry 
I  done  it.  Course  I'm  real  glad  to  see  you,  though,"  he 
added,  hurriedly. 

"Thanks.  Did  you  write  me  because  this  Wentworth 
man  was  comin'?" 

"No." 

"Or  because  the  housekeeper  and  her  hand-painted 
nephew  was  comin'  ?" 

"No.     No,  'twan't  nothin',  Cap'n  Noah,  honest !" 

"And  you're  not  in  trouble  at  all?  Haven't  been  in 
any  and  ain't  in  any  now  ?" 

It  took  longer  for  the  ex-cook  to  answer  this  question. 
When  he  did  answer  it  he  was  looking  out  of  the  win 
dow,  not  at  the  questioner. 

"No,"  he  said,  after  a  moment,  "there  ain't  any 
trouble ;  I'm  all  right." 

Cap'n  Noah  rose. 

"Well,  I'm  glad  of  it,"  he  said,  heartily.  "I'm  real 
glad  of  it,  Obe.  Now  I  can  go  back  to — er — Boston,  or 
wherever  I  want  to  go;  and  have  nothin'  to  worry 
about." 

Obadiah  turned  from  the  window. 

"You're  goin'  away?"  he  demanded. 

"Why,  yes.  I  came  down  here  'cause  I  thought  you 
needed  me.  Now  you  say  you  don't  need  me." 

103 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

Again  Obadiah  hesitated.  Then  he  said,  "No,  I — I — 
No,  of  course  I  don't  need  you,  only " 

He  did  not  finish  the  sentence,  but  turned  and  looked 
out  of  the  window  again.  Captain  Noah,  stepping 
quietly  to  a  position  where  he  could  see  the  little  man's 
face  with  the  afternoon  sunlight  upon  it,  regarded  him 
intently.  Then  he  reached  over  and  laid  a  hand  upon 
his  shoulder. 

"Lord  love  you,  Obe,"  he  said,  heartily,  "what  an  in 
nocent  you  are !  'Tain't  any  fun  to  fool  you,  it's  too 
easy.  I  ain't  goin'  away.  I'm  goin'  up  to  the  hotel  and 
I'm  goin'  to  stay  there  over  night ;  but  tomorrer  mornin' 
I'm  comin'  down  here  bag  and  baggage.  Didn't  you 
ask  me  over  and  over  again,  when  I  was  here  last  fall, 
to  come  and  make  you  a  visit  ?  Course  you  did !  Course 
you  did,  old  man !  Well,  I've  come  to  do  it.  That  'goin' 
away'  talk  was  just  foolin'.  You  couldn't  drive  me 
away.  Tomorrer  mornin'  I'm  comin'  here — to  stay — for 
a  good  long  spell,  just  as  you  asked  me  to.  There ! 
Now  ain't  you  glad  ?" 

Obadiah  did  look  glad,  really  glad.  But  he  also  looked 
troubled  and,  so  it  seemed  to  his  former  skipper, 
frightened. 


CHAPTER   VIII 

THAT  evening  Captain  Newcomb  and  Irving  Clif 
ford  sat  on  the  Mansion  House  porch  until  nearly 
midnight,  smoking  and  talking.  The  smoking  was 
done  by  both,  but  the  captain  did  most  of  the  talking. 
Clifford  was  very  glad  indeed  to  see  his  friend  of  the  pre 
vious  fall  and  especially  glad  to  learn  that  the  latter  had 
decided  to  stay  in  Trumet  for  some  weeks  at  least. 

"Might  just  as  well,"  explained  Noah.  "I'm  a  kind  of 
wanderer  on  the  face  of  the  earth  just  now.  No  home, 
no  job,  no  nothin' — but  my  health  and  a  tin  automobile. 
I  used  to  like  Trumet  when  I  was  a  little  shaver ;  I  liked 
it  just  as  well  when  I  was  down  last  October.  Now  I'm 
goin'  to  give  it  a  real  try-out  and,  if  I  keep  on  likin'  it, 
I  may  settle  down  here  for  keeps.  Got  to  have  some  kind 
of  moorin's  to  tie  up  to  when  you  get  too  old  to  cruise  in 
deep  water." 

He  said  nothing  to  Clifford  about  the  summons  he  had 
received  from  Obadiah  Burgess.  He  thought  it  best  to 
keep  that  a  secret  at  present,  even  from  Irving,  whose 
judgment  he  regarded  highly.  He  did  ask  some  round 
about  questions  concerning  Mr.  Burgess  and  his  affairs, 
but  the  engineer  seemed  to  know  little  *about  either. 

105 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

Everyone  spoke  well  of  Mrs.  Mayo,  he  said.    He  had  met 
her  once  or  twice  and  liked  her. 

"How  did  she  impress  you,  Captain  Newcomb?"  he 
asked. 

"Why — why,  she  impressed  me  fust-rate,"  was  the  an 
swer.  "Yes,  fust-rate.  I  couldn't  find  any  fault  any 
wheres.  That's  the  —  Humph !  Well,  never  mind. 
How  about  her  nephew?  I  ain't  met  him." 

"Young  Kenney?  Oh,  he's  all  right  enough.  He'll 
never  set  the  river  afire,  I  guess.  Rather  visionary  and 
dreamy,  they  say;  his  artistic  temperament,  no  doubt. 
He  paints;  did  you  know  that?" 

The  captain  grinned.  "Um-hm,"  he  said.  "Have  you 
seen  the  picture  he  made  of  Obe,  Burgess,  I  mean?" 

"No.    Was  it  a  good  likeness  ?" 

His  companion's  grin  became  a  chuckle.  He  rubbed 
his  knees. 

"I  don't  know's  you'd  call  it  a  good  likeness,  exactly," 
he  said.  "If  you  put  it  behind  bars  in  a  dark  room  the 
average  child  would  hanker  to  feed  it  peanuts.  All  it 
needs  is  fingers  on  its  feet  and  a  tail.  Ho,  ho !  But  Obe 
thinks  it  beautiful.  How  about  this  other  feller — the  one 
that  wears  the  wristers  on  his  ankles?" 

"The  what?" 

"Garters — or  gaiters,  I  believe  they  call  'em.  I  mean 
the  feller  that  sharpens  the  ends  of  his  mustache  with  a 
file.  The  one  with  the  sportin*  guard  dog,  or  the  guardin' 
sport  dog — Wentworth,  how  about  him?" 

Clifford  laughed  aloud.  The  captain  had  told  him  of 
his  adventure  at  the  cold-storage  plant  that  morning;  he 
had  heard  the  carpenters'  version  also. 

106 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

"Mr.  Calvin  Wentworth  is — well,  he  is  something  of 
an  enigma,"  he  observed. 

"Somethin'  of  a  what?  You  don't  mean  to  say  he's 
got  colored  blood  in  him?  I'd  never  have  guessed  it." 

"Ha,  ha!  No,  indeed.  You  misunderstood  me,  Cap 
tain.  I  say  he  is  something  of  a  riddle — a  puzzle.  It 
seems  strange  that  a  city  swell  like  him  should  be  content 
to  live  here  in  Trumet  the  year  round ;  not  here  on  busi 
ness  either,  but  just  existing,  that's  all.  When  I  knew 
him  in  New  York  he  showed  no  fondness  for  a  rural  life, 
the  reverse,  rather." 

"When  you  knew  him  in  New  York?  You  used  to 
know  him  there  then?" 

"Yes,  slightly.  Shortly  after  I  left  college  I  was  in 
New  York  for  a  time.  I  belonged  to  a  rather  good  club 
then ;  reckless  extravagance  on  my  part,  of  course,  but  I 
was  young  and  foolish.  Wentworth  belonged  to  the  same 
club ;  he  resigned  afterwards." 

"What  made  him  resign?" 

"I  don't  know.  Too  tame  an  organization,  perhaps. 
He  had  the  reputation  of  being  rather  a  high  roller  in 
those  days.  I  certainly  was  surprised  when  I  met  him 
here  in  Trumet.  He  says  his  health  is  poor  and  that  is 
why  he  is  here.  I  never  should  have  guessed  that  he  was 
an  invalid." 

"Humph!  What  did  he  used  to  do  for  a  livin'  when 
you  knew  him  over  to  New  York?  What  was  he  work- 
in'  at?" 

"I  don't  know.    I  never  inquired.    He  and  I  were  never 
friendly — slightly  acquainted,  that's  all.     You  seem  very 
much  interested  in  him,  Captain  Newcomb." 
8  107 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

"Do  I?  Well,  maybe  I  am.  When  you've  got  a  line 
out  for  herrin'  and  hook  on  to  a  goldfish,  it's  enough  to 
interest  the  average  feller,  seems  to  me.  How  did  you 
fust  meet  this  Calvin  man;  somebody  at  the  club  intro 
duce  you,  did  they?" 

Clifford's  expression  changed.  His  answer  was  curt, 
almost  sharp. 

"No,"  he  said. 

But  Captain  Noah  was  persistent.  "You  met  him 
somewheres  else  then?"  he  said. 

For  an  instant  the  young  man  hesitated.  Then  he  said : 
"I  met  him  at  the  home  of  a  mutual — er — acquaintance. 
I  hadn't  seen  him  for  years  until  he  came  down  to  the 
cold-storage  plant  a  month  or  more  ago.  He  calls  there 
occasionally,  just  as  he  did  this  morning,  to  smoke  and 
chat.  I  presume  he  finds  it  dull  here  in  the  village  at  this 
season  of  the  year.  I  should  think  he  might.  I  should 
die  if  I  had  no  work  to  do." 

"Humph !  Well,  maybe  he'd  die  if  he  had.  His  health's 
bad,  you  know.  This  house  where  you  met  him ;  belonged 
to  a  friend  of  yours,  you  say?'* 

"Yes." 

"This  friend,  then,  he  was  a  friend  of  Wentworth's, 
eh?" 

"She  was  an  acquaintance,  I  presume,  like  myself. 
Suppose  we  change  the  subject,  Captain.  You  won't 
mind,  will  you?" 

"Mind  ?  No,  no,  course  I  shan't.  Look  here,  son,  have 
I  been  makin'  a  nuisance  of  myself,  askin'  questions  when 
I  hadn't  no  business?  I  snum  I'm  sorry!  I  ask  your 
pardon." 

108 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

"No  necessity  for  apology,  none  in  the  least.  There 
are  some  unpleasant  memories  connected  with  that  period 
of  my  life  and  I  dislike  to  speak  of  it,  that's  all.  That's 
why  I  suggested  changing  the  subject." 

Captain  Noah  nodded.  "It's  a  good  suggestion,  too," 
he  agreed,  heartily.  "I've  had  about  enough  of  friend 
Wentworth  myself  for  now.  He's  a  kind  of  a  hothouse 
plant,  judgin'  by  the  looks  of  him,  and  the  air  in  a  hot 
house  never  did  agree  with  me  for  long  at  a  stretch. 
What'll  we  change  the  subject  to?  If  'twan't  that  I  might 
be  afraid  of  gettin'  my  foot  in  it  again,  Fd  be  tempted  to 
ask  how  that  nice  girl  was,  the  one  who  wouldn't  sell  me 
a  sideboard  for  a  bureau.  What  was  her  name?  Mary 
Barstow,  that's  it.  I  liked  her  fust-rate.  Is  she  pretty 
smart?" 

Irving  looked  at  him  quickly.  The  captain's  face  was 
innocence  itself. 

"Miss  Barstow  is  well,  I  believe,"  replied  Clifford. 

"So?  That's  good.  Don't  know  when  I've  seen  a 
young  woman  I  took  a  shine  to  so  quick.  Good  thing  for 
the  young  sparks  in  this  town  that  I'm  a  hundred  and 
eighty  instead  of  twenty-five.  Speakin'  of  age  and  an 
tiques  and  such,  how's  old  Leviticus,  her  step-pa?  Ba 
laam,  how's  he?" 

"He's  all  right.  At  least  I  haven't  heard  that  he  was 
not." 

"See  much  of  him,  do  you?" 

"No." 

There  was  a  finality  about  this  which  caused  the  cap 
tain  to  change  the  subject  again.  It  was  quite  evident 
that  Irving  Clifford  was  no  more  desirous  of  discussing 

109 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

Balaam  Griggs  than  he  had  been  of  recalling  memories 
of  his  New  York  sojourn. 

The  talk  thereafter  dealt  with  a  variety  of  topics.  Just 
before  they  separated  for  the  night  the  younger  man  said : 

"So  you  have  come  down  here — just  to  make  us  a  visit, 
Captain  Newcomb." 

"Ye-es,  I  guess  likely.  To  make  my  old  shipmate — 
and  you — a  visit.  Ain't  you  glad  to  see  me?" 

"Of  course  I  am." 

"Um-m.    But  you  have  your  doubts,  eh?" 

"Doubts?    Why,  did  you— did  I  say " 

"You  didn't  say  anything,  son — except  'just  to  make  a 
visit/  You  think  maybe  I've  got  some  other  reason  up 
my  sleeve,  eh  ?  Well,  perhaps  I  have,  perhaps  I  have." 

Clifford  was  confused  and  embarrassed. 

"Captain  Newcomb,"  he  said,  "I  beg  your  pardon.  I 
certainly  did  not  mean  to  imply  that  I  doubted  your 
word.  Of  course  your  reason  for  coming  here  is  not  in 
the  least  my  business.  It  was  only  that  something  you 
said — your  manner — led  me  to  infer — I  beg  your  par 
don." 

Captain  Noah  laid  a  hand  on  his  knee.  "That's  all 
right,  son,"  he  said,  heartily,  "that's  all  right.  No  need 
of  beggin'  pardons  between  us,  I  hope.  Some  of  these 
days  I'll  most  likely  tell  you  more  about  my  reasons  for 
comin'  here.  Just  now  I " 

He  stopped,  and  remained  silent  for  a  moment,  puffing 
at  the  stump  of  his  cigar.  Then  he  rose  from  his  chair. 

"Son,"  he  said,  again,  "do  you  remember  that  yarn  in 
the  Bible  about  the  feller  that  went  down  to — to  some 
where  or  'nother  and  fell  amongst  thieves  ?" 

no 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

"Yes,  certainly,  I  remember  it,  Captain." 
"Um-hm.    What  happened  then?    The  thieves  sprung 
up  and  choked  him,  didn't  they?" 

"Why,  not  exactly,  I  believe.    The " 

"Yes,  yes,  all  right.  I  was  gettin'  my  parables  snarled 
up  together,  wan't  I?  Ho,  ho!  Anyhow  this  feller  that 
fell  amongst  the  thieves  was  in  bad  shape  till  another 
chap  that  was  cruisin'  in  those  latitudes  came  along  and 
helped  him  out." 

"Yes ;  the  good  Samaritan." 

"That's  the  feller."  He  drew  two  or  three  more  big- 
puffs  and  then  tossed  the  stump  of  the  cigar  over  the 
porch  railing.  "I  caFlate  everybody  has  to  be  a  Samari 
tan  once  in  a  while,"  he  said.  "Good  night,  son." 


CHAPTER   IX 

THE  next  forenoon,  "bag  and  baggage,"  according 
to  his  promise  to  Obadiah,  he  arrived  at  the  Bad- 
scom  place  and  the  visit  began.  Mr.  Burgess 
welcomed  him  effusively;  if  he  still  felt  the  doubt  and 
uneasiness  of  the  previous  night  he  concealed  the  feel 
ing.  Mrs.  Mayo  also  seemed  glad  to  see  him,  and 
although  he  suspected  that  her  gladness  was  a  pretense, 
her  manner  and  behavior  furnished  no  excuse  for  the 
suspicion.  His  room  was  a  good-sized  one  overlooking 
the  bay  and,  like  the  rest  of  the  house,  it  was  neatness 
itself.  The  housekeeper  might  be,  and  probably  was, 
acting  with  an  ulterior  motive,  but  she  could  keep  house, 
even  Noah  was  obliged  to  admit  that. 

And  she  could  cook,  also.  Dinner  that  noon  was  the 
best  meal  the  captain  had  had  for  many  a  day.  At  that 
meal  he  met  for  the  first  time  Joe  Kenney,  Melissa 
Mayo's  nephew,  he  of  the  "artistic  temperament."  Young 
Kenney  was  a  freckle-faced  youth  with  a  blue  eye  and  a 
healthy  appetite.  Joe  seemed  to  be  rather  bashful,  said 
little  during  dinner  and,  after  bolting  his  share  of  the 
dessert,  hurried  off.  In  answer  to  the  captain's  question 

112 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

he  explained  that  he  was  over  at  Mr.  Griggs'  that  day 
helping  the  latter  "pack  up  some  stuff." 

"Does  your  nephew  work  for  Mr.  Griggs,  ma'am?" 
asked  Noah,  addressing  the  housekeeper.  The  question, 
innocent  enough,  seemed  to  embarrass  the  lady  some 
what. 

"Why — why,"  she  stammered,  "he  doesn't  exactly 
work  for  him.  Not  all  the  time,  that  is.  He  does  some 
times,  like  today." 

"Good,  strong,  healthy  lookin'  boy,"  said  Captain  Noah. 
"I  suppose  he's  plannin'  to  do  consider'ble  in  this  world, 
ma'am." 

Mrs.  Mayo  seemed  more  confused  than  ever.  "Yes — 
yes,"  she  said,  "Joey  plans  a  good  many  things.  He 
wants  to  go  West  awfully.  He's  a  great  reader  and  he's 
read  a  lot  about  the  West." 

"So?  I  had  an  idea  maybe  he  was  cal'latin'  to  be  a 
picture  painter.  Obe,  here,  showed  me  the  picture  he  did 
of  him." 

"Oh,  he  likes  to  do  pictures,  too,  but  he  does  those 
mostly  for  fun.  If  he  could  have  his  way  he'd  like  to  go 
out  West  and  work  on  a  ranch,  a  cattle  place,  you  know." 

"I  should  think  he'd  go,  then.  He  ain't  so  young  but 
what  he  can  take  a  chance.  At  his  age  I  wasn't  doin' 
much  but  takin'  chances." 

"I  know,  but — but  he  can't  go,  just  yet." 

"Oh,  he  can't,  eh?  I  see,  I  see.  That's  too  bad.  Ah, 
how  do  you  do,  Mr.  Wentworth.  Glad  to  see  you  again, 
sir." 

Mr.  Calvin  Wentworth,  debonair  as  ever,  had  just 
strolled  into  the  dining  room.  He  was  very  late  for  din- 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

ner,  in  fact  the  others  had  almost  finished,  but  he  ap 
peared  not  in  the  least  perturbed.  One  might  have  sur 
mised  that  it  took  much  more  than  tardiness  to  perturb 
Mr.  Wentworth.  But  he  was  capable  of  astonishment, 
and  Captain  Noah's  presence  in  that  house  and  at  that 
table  evidently  astonished  him  hugely. 

"Eh?"  he  exclaimed.    "Why— who " 

"Newcomb,"  exclaimed  the  captain.  "Noah  Newcomb, 
my  name  is.  Met  you  down  to  the  cold-storage  plant 
yesterday  mornin'.  Glad  to  see  you  again.  How's  that 
smart  dog  of  yours?  That's  as  good  a  watchdog  as  I 
cal'late  I  ever  saw.  Coin'  to  guard  that  automobile  of 
mine  till  doomsday,  he  was.  Ho,  ho!" 

Mrs.  Mayo  and  Mr.  Burgess  looked  at  each  other. 

"Why!"  exclaimed  the  former.  "Was  it  your  car  Mr. 
Wentworth's  dog  was  guardin',  Cap'n  Newcomb?  Now 
ain't  that  funny!  Mr.  Wentworth  was  tellin'  us  about 
that  last  night.  Wasn't  you,  Mr.  Wentworth?" 

"Yes,"  put  in  Obadiah.  "Cousin  Calvin  said  that  if  he 
hadn't  t-t-took  pity  on  the  old  g-g-guy  that  owned  the  car 
and  called  Sport  off,  that  auto  would  have  been  out  of 
commission  yet.  But  we  didn't  know  'twas  your  auto, 
Cap'n  Noah." 

The  captain  nodded. 

"I  was  the  guy,"  he  said,  simply. 

The  housekeeper,  looking  first  at  Noah  and  then  at 
Mr.  Wentworth,  smiled  slightly  and  her  eyes  twinkled. 
Obadiah  went  on. 

"That  Sport  is  s-s-some  dog,"  he  declared,  "some  dog. 
When  he  sets  out  to  guard  anything  he's  like  a  mud 
t-t-turtle — he  won't  let  go  till  it  thunders.  I  cal'late  you 

114 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

was  glad,  Cap'n  Noah,  when  Cousin  Calvin  took  p-p-pity 
on  you.  Tain't  thundered  yet,  you  know,  now  has  it?" 

The  captain's  eyes  met  Mr.  Wentworth's  and  the  cap 
tain  smiled.  It  was  evident  that,  in  his  story-telling  the 
previous  evening,  Cousin  Calvin  had  omitted  to  mention 
the  fire  hose. 

"You're  right,  Obe,"  said  Noah,  with  a  nod.  "It  ain't 
thundered,  but — well,  there  was  one  spell  when  Mr. 
Wentworth  seemed  to  think  'twas  goin'  to  rain.  Even  the 
dog  seemed  to  think  so,  didn't  he,  Mr.  Wentworth?" 

Cousin  Calvin  nodded,  muttered  something  or  other, 
and  sat  down  at  table.  The  housekeeper,  who  had  kept 
his  dinner  warm  in  the  kitchen,  served  it  deftly  and 
promptly.  Evidently  she  was  used  to  his  habits.  He  did 
not  thank  her.  He  paid  little  attention  to  anyone ;  some 
thing,  possibly  the  memory  of  the  fire  hose,  had  put  a 
damper  on  his  powers  of  conversation.  Mr.  Burgess  in 
troduced  his  friend  and  former  skipper,  and  paid  glowing 
tributes  to  the  latter's  character  and  his  skill  as  a  seafar 
ing  man.  Mr.  Wentworth  nodded  acknowledgment  of 
the  introduction  and  managed  to  restrain  his  enthusiasm 
when  told  that  Captain  Newcomb  was  to  be,  for  some 
weeks  at  least,  a  member  of  the  household.  When  the 
captain,  who  was  urbanity  and  politeness  personified,  ad 
dressed  him,  he  answered  with  chilling  hauteur. 

But  before  the  day  was  over  he  found  an  opportunity 
to  get  his  Cousin  Obadiah  aside  and  question  him  con 
cerning  the  new  arrival. 

"Who  is  the  old  card?"  he  inquired.  "Where  does  he 
come  from?  What  is  he  doing  here?" 

Mr.  Burgess'  answer  was  fluent  and  lengthy.    Cousin 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

Calvin  gathered  from  the  mass  of  information  one  or  two 
items  which  seemed  to  interest  even  his  bored  metropoli 
tan  mind. 

"So  he's  got  the  stuff,  has  he?"  he  asked.  "Well  fixed, 
eh?  A  million,  should  you  say?" 

Obadiah,  who  had  not  the  slightest  ground  for  estimat 
ing  his  friend's  fortune,  nor  even  for  assuming  that  there 
was  such  a  fortune,  other  than  the  fact  of  the  captain's 
retiring  from  business,  admitted  that  there  most  likely 
wasn't  quite  a  million. 

"Half  a  million?" 

"Wa-al,  maybe  not  quite " 

"Gad,  I  thought  he  must  be  a  Rockefeller,  you  were 
so  reverent  when  you  mentioned  his  money.  What  has 
the  old  guy  got;  a  hundred  thousand?" 

Obadiah,  making  a  loyal  guess,  opined  that  he  shouldn't 
wonder  a  mite. 

"Huh !  Well,  does  he  ever  let  go  of  it  ?  Is  he  a  tight 
wad?" 

Mr.  Burgess,  whose  education  in  up-to-date  slang  had 
been  neglected,  but  who  judged  that  a  tightwad  was  an 
undesirable  person,  stoutly  declared  that  his  friend  was 
not  that. 

"No  sir-ee !"  he  affirmed.  "I've  seen  him  out  of  sight 
of  land  for  a  week  at  a  time  and  he  wasn't  never  no 
t-t-tightwad." 

Cousin  Calvin  strolled  away,  hands  in  pockets,  and  a 
meditative  expression  upon  his  face.  At  supper  that 
evening  he  unbent  toward  Captain  Noah ;  was,  in  a  con 
descending  way,  almost  genial. 

Mr.  Balaam  Griggs  dropped  in  for  supper;  "just  hap- 

116 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

pened  to  be  goin'  along  by,"  he  said.  Balaam  had  heard 
the  news  of  the  visitor  at  the  Badscom  place.  He  greeted 
the  captain  like  an  old  friend  returned  after  a  long  and 
agonizing  separation,  and  the  captain's  greeting  of  Mr. 
Griggs  was,  if  not  as  effusive,  still  very  cordial  and 
friendly. 

The  next  day  Obadiah  underwent  another  questioning 
concerning  Captain  Noah.  This  time  Mr.  Griggs  was  the 
questioner.  He  asked,  not  directly,  of  course,  but  by 
various  roundabout  methods,  the  size  of  the  captain's  for 
tune,  his  past  and  probable  future  and,  more  than  all,  his 
reasons  for  coming  to  Trumet  and  staying  there. 

Now,  as  it  happened,  before  retiring  the  night  before 
Noah  and  Obadiah  had  had  a  long  chat  and  the  captain, 
usually  rather  reticent  when  dealing  with  his  own  plans 
and  intentions,  had  seemed  willing,  almost  anxious,  to  tell 
his  host  about  those  plans.  They  were  rather  vague 
plans,  not  defined  as  yet,  but  they  centered  about  the  idea 
of  buying  Trumet  real  estate  as  an  investment.  "Got  to 
put  my  money  somewheres,"  said  Captain  Noah,  "and, 
the  way  I  feel  now,  Trumet  real  estate  looks  good  to  me. 
Course  I  came  down  here  really  just  to  see  you,  Obe,  but 
there  is  no  harm  in  lookin'  around  while  I'm  down  here, 
is  there?" 

All  of  which,  Balaam,  by  judicious  questioning,  man 
aged  to  extract  from  Mr.  Burgess.  And  Mr.  Burgess 
confessed  as  much  to  Captain  Noah  lat^r  on. 

"They're  all  awful  curious  about  you,  Cap'n,"  he  said, 
proudly.  "Makes  a  feller  feel  g-g-good  to  have  a  visitor 
all  hands  takes  such  an  interest  in.  And  they  like  you, 
too.  Why,  I  ain't  seen  Cousin  Calvin  so  social  and  folksy 

117 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

with  anybody  sence  he's  been  here  as  he  is  along  of  you." 

"Well,  well,  I  want  to  know !  I  ought  to  be  real  flat 
tered,  hadn't  I,  Obe?" 

"Why,  yes,  I  suppose  you  had,"  was  the  answer,  given 
very  seriously.  "Cousin  Calvin  has  been  used  to  livin' 
amongst  the  highest  k-k-kind  of  society,  he  says  so  him 
self,  and  it  means  somethin'  to  have  him  t-t-take  a  shine 
to  you.  There  ain't  many  he  does,  I  tell  you  that." 

"Um-hm.  Well,  I  must  try  not  to  get  too  sot  up  about 
it." 

"And  Balaam,  he  thinks  you're  a  fine  man.  Says  he 
don't  know  when  he's  seen  such  a  able,  fine-spoken  man. 
Him  and  Calvin  has  asked  more'n  a  thousand  questions 
about  you !" 

"Hum !  Well,  I  shall  get  stuck  up  if  I  don't  look  out. 
lAnd  this  Mrs.  Mayo  now;  I  cal'late  she's  asked  a  lot 
about  me,  too — eh?" 

"Why— why,  no,  she  ain't." 

"Aint,  eh?" 

"No.  She  likes  you,  I  guess,  but  she  don't  ask  me 
questions  about  you  and  about  how  much  you're  worth 
and  all,  same  as  the  others  do.  G-g-guess  likely  that's 
'cause  she  is  a  woman ;  women  ain't  interested  in  how 
much  m-m-money  a  feller's  got,  same  as  men  are." 

"Oh,  ain't  they?" 

"No,  stands  to  reason  they  ain't.  And  Melissy  she 
don't  ask  hardly  rny  questions  about  you.  Just  kind  of 
seems  to  t-t-take  you  for  granted,  as  you  might  say." 

Captain  Noah  had  no  comment  to  make  on  this  state 
ment,  but  a  week  or  so  later  when,  during  a  call  upon 
Irving  Clifford  at  the  cold-storage  plant,  Irving  happened 

118 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

to  ask  him  how  he  enjoyed  his  visit  at  the  Burgess  home, 
he  made  this  enigmatical  answer,  if  it  can  be  called  an 
answer : 

"Son,"  he  said,  "did  you  ever  do  one  of  them  cut-out 
picture  puzzles,  same  as  young  folks  like  to  play  with 
nowadays  ?  Um-hm.  Dorcas,  my  sister,  she  wan't  what 
you'd  call  young,  but  she  liked  to  fuss  with  those  things 
and  I  used  to  tackle  'em  occasionally.  Sometimes  you 
got  a  piece  that  wouldn't  seem  to  fit  in  anywheres.  Seems 
almost  as  if  it  didn't  belong  in  the  puzzle.  I'm  havin' 
that  kind  of  trouble  just  now.  Most  of  the  pieces  in  my 
puzzle  fit  all  right — I've  got  their  number,  as  the  boys 
say — but  there's  one  that  don't,  I  can't  seem  to  make  her 
— it,  I  mean — fit.  Seems  almost  as  if  that  piece  had  got 
in  by  mistake." 

Clifford,  who  did  not  understand,  except  vaguely,  was 
tempted  to  question,  but  he  judged  it  wisest  not  to  do  so. 
His  acquaintanceship  with  Captain  Newcomb  had  pro 
gressed  sufficiently  to  teach  him  that  the  captain  told  what 
he  wished  of  his  affairs,  and  that  it  was  poor  policy  to 
press  for  more. 

"Perhaps  the  piece  did  get  in  by  mistake,"  he  ventured. 

Captain  Noah  shook  his  head. 

"I  don't  believe  it,"  he  said,  "I  don't  believe  it.  It's 
just  that  I  ain't  got  the  right  way  of  lookin*  at  it  yet.  It 
must  be — it  must  be,  or  else  what's  it  doin'  !n  with  the 
bunch?  But — but,  I  snum,  son,  it's  got  me  so  fur." 


CHAPTER   X 

IT  continued  to  "get"  him  more  and  more  as  the  days 
and  weeks  passed.  He  was  now  a  prime  favorite  at 
the  Burgess  home.  Balaam  Griggs,  whose  calls  and 
little  friendly  "droppings  in"  for  meals  were  at  least  as 
frequent  as  ever,  now  addressed  him  by  his  Christian 
name  and  slapped  him  on  the  back  when  they  met. 
Balaam  had  confidentially  taken  the  captain  into  his  con 
fidence  concerning  two  or  three  exceptional  bargains  in 
Trumet  land  which  he,  Balaam,  alone  knew  of,  but  which 
knowledge,  owing  to  his  love  for  his  new  friend,  he  was 
willing  to  impart  to  the  latter  provided  "nobody  said 
nothin'." 

Captain  Noah  was  tremendously  interested  in  these 
bargains.  He  accompanied  Balaam  on  tours  of  inspection 
during  which  Mr.  Griggs  invariably  spoke  in  a  whisper 
and  kept  looking  cautiously  about  for  fear  someone  might 
see  them  looking  at  the  land  together,  "smell  a  rat"  and 
seize  the  wonderful  opportunity — before  the  captain  did. 
The  fates  were  kind  in  this  respect,  the  opportunity  re 
mained  unseized,  although  Mr.  Griggs  declared  that  he 
woke  up  each  morning  "cal'latin*  to  find  them  lots 
snapped  up  ahead  of  us." 

120 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

They  spoke  of  other  investments  also,  of  business  mat 
ters  in  general.  The  captain  usually  led  the  conversation 
in  this  direction  and  Balaam  followed  the  lead.  They 
discussed  the  "antique"  business,  and  Mr.  Griggs,  after 
the  friendship  had  developed  sufficiently  to  warrant  a  de 
gree  of  confidence  on  his  part,  mentioned  a  few  good 
trades  he  had  made.  He  did  not  mention  the  chamber  set 
which  Obadiah  had  acquired  through  his  "kindness"; 
that  he  neglected  entirely. 

From  all  these  interviews  and  talks  Captain  Noah  gath 
ered  enough  information  concerning  Mr.  Burgess'  "best 
friend"  to  strengthen  the  impression  he  had  already 
gained  concerning  the  latter's  character.  And  he  assisted 
Balaam  in  confirming  the  idea  that  he,  Noah,  was  a  man 
of  means,  guileless,  trustful  and  decidedly  worth  culti 
vating. 

Mr.  Calvin  Wentworth,  of  New  York,  was  an  abso 
lutely  different  proposition.  Cousin  Calvin  did  not  slap 
the  captain  on  the  back,  nor  hail  him  by  his  Christian 
name.  His  manner  toward  the  former  skipper  of  the 
Flyaway  was  still  lofty  and  condescending,  but  he  un 
bent  sufficiently  to  joke  with  him,  to  smoke  his  cigars 
and,  on  one  or  two  occasions,  to  borrow  small  sums  of 
money.  Trifling  accommodations,  these  were,  until  his 
dividend  checks  arrived,  so  he  said.  Captain  Noah 
seemed  so  eager,  almost  grateful  fo'r  the  opportunity  of 
forestalling  the  "dividend  check"  that  Wentworth's 
amusement  was  scarcely  repressed.  The  "old  card"  was 
certainly  queer,  although  a  convenience.  He  was  in  such 
good  humor  that,  in  answer  to  Noah's  inquiries  concern 
ing  New  York  life,  he  told  a  few  anecdotes  of  his  own 

121 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

adventures  in  the  metropolis.  To  these  the  captain  lis 
tened  with  awe-stricken  admiration.  He  made  mental 
notes  as  he  listened,  and,  later  on,  in  the  quiet  of  his  own 
room,  he  transferred  these  notes  from  his  mind  to  paper. 
Also  he  wrote  a  letter  to  his  nephew  in  New  York  City. 
In  this  letter  the  Wentworth  name  was  mentioned  more 
than  once. 

So,  in  doing  his  "picture  puzzle"  the  parts  labeled 
"Calvin  Wentworth"  and  "Balaam  Griggs"  were,  in  the 
captain's  mind,  coming  into  place  satisfactorily.  He  be 
lieved  that  he  was,  as  he  told  Clifford,  "getting  their 
numbers."  But  the  pieces  of  the  puzzle  which  he  was 
finding  it  hard  to  put  where  they  belonged  were  the  two 
which  should,  it  would  seem,  have  been  easiest ;  they  were 
Mrs.  Melissa  Mayo  and  Obadiah  Burgess  himself. 

The  idea  of  there  being  any  mystery  connected  with 
meek,  stammering,  peaceful  little  Obadiah  seemed  absurd 
on  the  face  of  it.  The  idea  that  Obadiah  could  keep  a 
secret  long  enough  to  cover  up  a  mystery  was  just  as  ab 
surd.  But  apparently  he  was  doing  it.  Captain  Noah 
was  more  than  ever  convinced  that  his  former  cook  had 
not  told  him  the  whole  truth,  that  he  was  keeping  back 
the  real  reason,  the  real  trouble,  which  had  caused  him  to 
write  asking  his  friend  and  ex-skipper  to  come  to  Trumet. 
Obadiah  insisted  that  this  was  not  so,  that  he  had  written 
because  he  was  "kind  of  worried  about  the  Cousin  Calvin 
business,  whether  to  have  him  die  on  me  or  not,"  and  had 
wanted  his  friend's  advice.  This  explanation  was  plausi 
ble  enough,  so  far  as  it  went,  but  it  did  not  go  far  enough. 
It  did  not  explain  why  Mr.  Burgess  appeared  so  guilty 
and  embarrassed  when  Captain  Noah  mentioned  the  let- 

122 


EXTRICATING   UBADIAH 

ter,  why  he  seemed  so  uncomfortable,  even  wretched, 
when  questioned  concerning  it,  and  least  of  all  did  it  ex 
plain  why  the  captain  so  often  found  him  moping  alone 
in  his  room  or  on  the  bluff  by  the  shore,  with  an  expres 
sion  of  abject,  hopeless  misery  on  his  face.  That  queer, 
round  little  face  had  so  shone  with  pride  and  happiness 
when  Noah  saw  it  during  his  first  visit  to  Trumet  that 
the  contrast  was  particularly  disturbing. 

The  captain  had  come  to  the  Burgess  home  with  a 
fairly  well-defined  idea  in  his  head,  an  idea  which,  he 
believed,  would  prove  the  solution  of  this  part  of  his  puz 
zle.  He  had  believed  that  Obadiah's  odd  behavior  and 
embarrassment  were  due  to  the  fact  that  he  and  his 
housekeeper  were  entangled  in  some  sort  of  matrimonial 
engagement,  that  he  had  proposed  to  her,  or,  which  would 
be  more  likely,  she  had  proposed  to  him  and  they  were 
to  be  married.  He  surmised  that,  after  this  had  hap 
pened,  Obadiah  had  lost  his  nerve  and  had  written  for 
help  in  order  to  break  off  the  relationship.  Captain  Noah, 
knowing  that  Griggs  had  been  responsible  for  the  hiring 
cf  Mrs.  Mayo  as  housekeeper,  summoning  her  all  the  way 
from  Cape  Ann  to  take  the  position,  had,  even  before  he 
saw  her,  labeled  her  a  clever,  designing  woman  who,  like 
the  rest,  was  after  the  Burgess  money. 

His  first  impression  had,  in  spite  of  this  prejudice,  been 
a  favorable  one.  This  favorable  impression  upon  fur 
ther  acquaintance  had  deepened.  If  things  had  not  been 
as  they  were,  if  he  were  not  perfectly  sure  she  was  pur 
suing  some  underhand  plan  or  other — that  she  must  be, 
there  could  be  no  other  explanation  of  her  presence,  she, 
a  relative  and  protegee  of  Balaam  Griggs — if  he  were  not 
9  125 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

so  stubbornly  determined  that  this  must  be  so,  he  would 
have  declared  long  ago  that  he  liked  and  respected  her. 
He  did  give  up  the  idea  of  there  being  any  love  affair 
between  her  and  Obadiah.  It  was  perfectly  evident  there 
was  not.  There  were  no  signs  of  it  on  Obadiah's  part, 
and  she  treated  him  with  the  same  good-humored,  man 
aging  sort  of  kindness  with  which  she  treated  her  nephew, 
young  Kenney.  There  was  nothing  sentimental  in  her 
manner,  nor  was  she  kinder  to  her  employer,  or  more 
attentive,  than  to  any  other  member  of  the  household. 

So  the  captain  gave  up  the  idea  that  she  was  planning 
to  marry  Obadiah.  And,  as  the  time  passed  and  he  and 
she  became  better  acquainted,  he  found  his  other  suspi 
cions  wavering.  She  was  capable,  she  was  good-humored, 
she  enjoyed  a  joke  almost  as  well  as  he  did.  She  could 
be  sympathetic,  and,  when  Cousin  Calvin's  dog,  Sport, 
got  into  a  fight  and  came  home,  limping  on  three  legs, 
a  badly  chewed  canine,  her  bandaging  and  nursing  of 
the  suffering  creature  seemed  to  prove  that  she  had  a 
kind  heart.  And  she  possessed  a  wonderful  fund  of 
Noah's  most  prized  faculty,  New  England  common-sense. 

He  and  she  would  have  been  the  best  of  friends  by  this 
time,  were  it  not  for  his  feeling  that  no  relative  of  Ba 
laam  Griggs  could  be  honest.  Even  in  spite  of  this  he 
found  himself  liking  her  against  his  will,  but,  with  cus 
tomary  "sotness"  he  tried  all  the  harder  to  discover  some 
underhand  reason  for  her  being  there.  And,  at  last,  he 
believed  he  had  discovered  something,  a  straw  showing 
which  way  the  wind  blew.  He  discovered  that  Obadiah 
had  with  customary  easy-going  carelessness  intrusted  the 
buying  of  the  household  supplies  to  his  housekeeper  and 

124 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

that  she  was  buying  them  of  Mr.  Griggs,  who  seemed 
to  be  acting  as  a  sort  of  broker — a  broker  who  exacted  a 
liberal  commission,  the  captain  had  no  doubt. 

One  of  the  local  grocers  gave  him  the  hint  which  led 
to  this  discovery.  The  grocer  asked  Captain  Noah  what 
they  lived  on  down  at  the  Badscom  place.  "Must  be  east 
wind  puddin'  with  fresh  air  sass,"  declared  the  man. 
"Nigh's  I  can  find  out  Burgess  nor  his  housekeeper  don't 
buy  much  of  anything  of  anybody.  Not  in  this  town 
they  don't,  anyway." 

So  the  captain  investigated  and  learned  from  the  sta 
tion  agent  that  Balaam  was  receiving  a  good  many  pack 
ages  and  bundles  by  express  from  Boston  grocers  and 
provision  dealers.  He  questioned  Obadiah  and  found  that 
the  latter  knew  little  or  nothing  about  the  matter.  "Me- 
lissy,  she  does  the  buyin',"  explained  Obadiah. 

"Does  she  do  the  payin',  too?"  inquired  Noah,  tartly. 

"Eh?  Yes,  sartin  she  does.  She  tells  me  how  much 
money  she  needs  every  week  and  I  g-g-give  it  to  her.  It's 
the  easiest  way ;  saves  me  a  lot  of  trouble." 

Captain  Noah  shook  his  head.  That  afternoon  he 
waited  his  chance  until  the  housekeeper  was  alone  in  the 
kitchen.  Then  he  went  in  and  sat  down  in  the  chair  by 
the  window.  The  lady  was  standing  by  the  kitchen  table 
rolling  pie  crust. 

"Mrs.  Mayo,"  said  the  captain,  suddenly,  "how  much 
trade  do  you  give  Crowell  Brothers  in  the  course  of  a 
week,  do  you  think  likely?"  Crowell  Brothers  was  the 
name  of  Trumet's  leading  grocery  firm. 

The  housekeeper  looked  at  him. 

"Not  very  much/'  she  said. 

125 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

"Oh,  I  want  to  know !  Trade  with  Solon  Baxter,  I  sup 
pose,  eh?" 

"No;  or,  at  any  rate,  no  more  than  I  do  with  Crowell 
Brothers." 

"Sho!  Is  that  so?  Send  way  over  to  Bayport,  do  you? 
That's  a  pretty  long  way  to  go,  seems  to  me." 

"I  don't  trade  at  Bayport,  Cap'n  Newcomb." 

"Then " 

Ever  since  his  first  question  she  had  been  watching  him 
intently  and  now  she  interrupted  him. 

"Just  a  minute,  Cap'n  Newcomb,"  she  said.  "You've 
found  it  out,  haven't  you  ?  I  wondered  how  long  'twould 
be  before  you  did." 

Captain  Noah  stared  at  her. 

"Found  it  out?  Found  what  out?  I  don't  know  what 
you  mean,  Mrs.  Mayo." 

"Oh,  yes  you  do.  I  mean  youVe  found  out  that  my 
cousin,  Balaam  Griggs,  sells  me  about  everything  in  the 
way  of  supplies  that  comes  into  this  house.  He  does. 
Now  what  else  have  you  found  out;  anything?" 

The  captain  swallowed  hard.  This  was  decidedly  not 
the  way  he  had  expected  Mrs.  Mayo  to  act.  He  had  ex 
pected  to  lead  up  to  his  discovery  of  her  dealings  with 
Balaam  and  then  listen  to  a  variety  of  explanations  and 
excuses.  To  have  her  answer  his  question  before  it  was 
asked  and  then  ask  one  of  her  own  along  the  same  line 
was  a  staggerer. 

"Why— why— "  he  stammered,  "I " 

She  wiped  the  flour  from  her  hands  with  her  apron 
and,  crossing  the  room,  sat  down  in  a  chair  facing  him. 
Her  expression  was  very  grave,  and  the  captain  noticed 

126 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

that  her  hands,  now  folded  in  her  lap,  trembled  just  a 
little.  She  seemed  to  be  fighting  something,  agitation, 
distress,  alarm — something  of  the  sort.  Yet  her  tone  was 
calm  enough. 

"Cap'n  Newcomb,"  she  said,  "you're  a  great  friend 
of  Mr.  Burgess's,  ain't  you?" 

"Eh?  Why,  yes,  I  suppose  I  am.  I  like  him  and  he 
seems  to  like  me  pretty  well." 

"Likes  you!  My  soul  and  body!  He  thinks  you're  a 
sight  bigger  man  than  the  President,  and  he  worships 
the  ground  you  tread  on." 

"Oh,  now,  Mrs.  Mayo,  don't " 

"Cap'n  Newcomb,  don't  let's  waste  words.  I  ain't  got 
any  to  waste  just  now  and  I  don't  feel  like  complimentin' 
anybody ;  you  can  be  sure  of  that.  You  know  what  I  just 
said  is  true.  Now  then,  if  you  are  such  a  friend  of  his, 
why  do  you  let  things  go  on  as  they  are?  Why  do  you?" 

"Why — why — I  don't  just  get  what  you  mean,  Mrs. 
Mayo?  I  don't  understand." 

"Don't  you  ?  Well,  if  you  don't,  then  you're  a  lot  more 
stupid  than  I  give  you  credit  for  bein'.  Cap'n  Newcomb, 
do  you  know  what  I  thought,  or  more  than  half  thought, 
when  you  came  to  this  house  to  live?  I  thought  maybe 
you,  bein'  such  a  good  friend  of  Obadiah  Burgess,  had 
come  here  on  purpose  to  try  and  help  him  out  of  his  trou 
ble.  That's  what  I  thought.  Did  you  come  for  that  ?" 

Captain  Noah  stared  at  her  in  amazed  silence.  Before 
he  could  decide  how  to  answer,  or  even  to  answer  at  all, 
she  went  on. 

"Well,  never  mind  tellin*  me,"  she  said.  "If  you  did 
come  for  that  you  wouldn't  want  to  tell  me  anyhow,  I 

127 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

suppose ;  and  if  you  didn't,  why — well  then  it  don't  make 
any  difference.  But  that  was  what  I  thought,  anyway, 
I'm  sure  of  one  thing,  though,  and  that  is  that  you're  an 
honest  man.  And  if  you  are  an  honest  man  and  an  hon 
est  friend  of  Mr.  Burgess,  why  don't  you  help  him? 
Why  do  you  stand  by  and  see  the  poor  thing  imposed  on 
and — and  cheated — yes,  and  robbed,  for  that's  what  it 
amounts  to?  Why  do  you  do  it?" 

Her  agitation  was  suppressed  no  longer.  She  had  risen 
to  her  feet  and  her  eyes  were  snapping.  The  captain 
breathed  heavily  and  shook  his  head. 

"I  declare!"  he  exclaimed,  "if  this  ain't- -  Look  here, 
Mrs.  Mayo,  if  you  don't  mind,  suppose  you  answer  me 
this :  Who  is  it  that's  imposin'  and  cheatin'  and — and 
murderin' — or  whatever  'tis?  Who?" 

He  smiled,  but  the  housekeeper  did  not  smile. 

"You  know  who,"  she  asserted.  "Why  do  you  ask 
that?  Are  you  blind?" 

"Well,  I  never  thought  I  was,  but — but —  And  it's 
Obadiah  that's  bein'  murdered,  you  say?" 

"He's  bein'  swindled,  done  out  of  his  money,  imposed 
on.  Don't  tell  me  you  don't  see  it;  you  must.  You've 
known  him  all  your  life,  Cap'n  Newcomb.  You  know  he 
ain't  much  more  than  a  good,  kind-hearted,  innocent, 
simple  sort  of  child.  Anybody  can  get  the  best  of  him  ; 
anybody  can  impose  on  him;  hell  trust  anybody,  and 
swallow  anything  they  say  for  gospel  truth.  You  know 
it — you  must  know  it.  He's  had  a  little  money  left  him  ; 
not  very  much,  I  guess,  but  some.  However  much  it  was 
—or  is  now — he  won't  have  it  long.  Can't  you  see  he 
won't?" 

128 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

Captain  Noah  pulled  his  beard,  and  looked  up  at  her 
from  under  his  brows. 

"Humph !"  he  grunted.  "Well,  supposin'  I  can  see  it 
— or  guess  it,  which  is  the  next  best  thing,  what  would 
you  expect  me  to  do  about  it?" 

1  Do  ?  Stop  it.  Tell  him  what's  goin'  on.  Prove  it  to 
him." 

"Um-hm.  And  who  shall  I  tell  him  is  doin'  the — er — 
swindlin'  ?" 

"Everyone.     This  Wentworth  man  for  one." 

"Sho!  Cousin  Calvin?  Mercy,  how  you  talk,  Mrs. 
Mayo !  Why,  Cousin  Calvin  is  an  invalid.  He's  sick  and 
down  here  for  his  health,  Cousin  Calvin  is." 

"Sick !  I've  done  consider'ble  nursin'  in  my  time,  Cap'n 
Newcomb,  and  if  he's  sick,  then  you  and  I  are  in  the  last 
stages  ourselves.  He  eats  as  much  as  both  of  us  together. 
Sick!  He's  sick  of  lookin'  out  for  himself,  maybe,  but — 
Oh,  you  know  he  isn't  sick !" 

"Well,  he  says  he  is.  And,  besides,  he's  goin'  to  leave 
Obe  all  his  money  when  he  dies." 

"He  won't.  Mr.  Burgess'll  die  forty  years  ahead  of 
him." 

The  captain  laughed.  "But  your  own  relation,  Balaam 
Griggs,  was  dead  set  on  Obe's  gettin'  him  here,"  he  said. 

"I  know  it.  But  that  makes  no  difference.  My  rela 
tion,"  with  bitter  emphasis  on  the  word,  "is  responsible 
for  lots  of  things,  but  that  don't  make  'em  right.  He's 
responsible  for  my  buyin'  the  groceries  and  things  from 
him  instead  of  from  the  stores,  and  payin'  half  again  as 
much,  for  all  I  know — I  haven't  tried  to  find  out.  And 
here  am  I — spongin'  my  livin'  and  my  nephew's  livin' 

129 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

from  Mr.  Burgess.  Oh,  Cap'n  Newcomb,  why  don't  you 
do  it  ?  Get  rid  of  the  Wentworth  man,  get  rid  of  Balaam, 
get  rid  of  me — get  rid  of  us  all.  We're  all  cheats  and 
swindlers — all  but  Joe,  and  he  doesn't  realize,  poor  boy. 
Pitch  us  all  out,  neck  and  crop ;  it's  what  we  deserve." 

She  paused,  her  bosom  heaving.  Then  she  turned 
away. 

"There!"  she  said,  "I  guess  I've  said  too  much,  more 
than  I'd  ought  to,  I'm  sure.  There's  times  when  a  body 
can't  hold  in  any  longer.  I  don't  know  what  you  think 
of  me — but  it  doesn't  make  any  difference.  Nothin* 
makes  much  difference,  so  far  as  I  can  see." 

She  turned  and,  leaving  her  pie  crust  unfinished, 
walked  toward  the  door  of  the  dining  room.  Captain 
Noah,  rising  from  his  chair,  strode  after  her. 

"Just  a  minute,  Mrs.  Mayo,"  he  said.  "You  have  said 
a  good  deal,  I  will  give  in.  Some  of  what  youVe  said  I 
understand,  caFlate  I've  been  understandin'  it  better 
every  day  I've  been  here.  But  some  I  don't.  You  tell 
me  you're  here  spongin'  your  livin'  off  Obadiah.  I  can't 
see  what  you  mean  by  that.  You're  housekeeper  here  and 
I  hope  you  won't  mind  my  sayin'  that  you're  a  good  one, 
as  good  a  one  as  ever  I  saw.  You  earn  your  wages,  what 
ever  they  are.  Now  why  do  you  call  that  'spongin'  ?' " 

She  turned  quickly. 

"Because  it  is,"  she  said,  fiercely.  "Not  now,  perhaps, 
with  all  this  tribe  in  the  house,  but  it  would  be  if  they 
weren't  here.  Obadiah  meant  to  live  here  alone,  he's  told 
me  so,  himself,  more  than  once.  He  can  cook;  it  used 
to  be  his  trade.  He  doesn't  need  a  housekeeper;  all  he 
needs  is  a  woman  to  come  in  twice  a  week  or  so  and  help 

130 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

with  the  cleanin'.  He  can't  afford  to  pay  me — or  I  don't 
believe  he  can.  And  I'm  sartin  sure  he  can't  afford  to 
feed  and  lodge  Mr.  Wentworth  and  me  and  Joe,  to  say 
nothin'  of  Balaam  one  meal  out  of  every  three." 

"And  me/'  put  in  Noah. 

"You  ain't  permanent,  same  as  we  are.  And  you  ain't 
here  for  business,"  with  scornful  emphasis.  "You're 
clean  and  aboveboard  and  honest.  Oh !  why  don't  you 
get  rid  of  us  all?  Throw  us  all  out — and  wash  your 
hands  afterwards  ?  .  .  .  There,  please  don't  say  any  more 
to  me.  Please  don't!" 

But  the  captain  would  not  let  her  go. 

"Only  one  more  thing,  Mrs.  Mayo,"  he  said ;  "just  one. 
If  you  feel  that  you  ain't  needed  here,  what  makes  you 
stay?  When  you  found  you  wan't  needed,  or  really 
needed,  why  didn't  you  leave  them?  If  you  think  you're 
'spongin' '  a  livin' — that  was  your  own  name  for  it,  not 
mine — why  don't  you  quit  the  ship  this  minute?  Just 
hop  overboard  and  go?  Why  not?" 

And  now  it  was  she  who  hesitated.  And  when  she 
answered  it  was  without  looking  at  him. 

"I — I — you  mustn't  ask  me,  Cap'n  Newcomb,"  she 
said,  with  a  choke  in  her  voice.  "There  are  some  things 
we  can't —  There!  please  don't  talk  to  me  any  more." 

She  hastened  into  the  dining  room.  The  captain,  a 
greatly  disturbed  and  thoroughly  puzzled  individual, 
stood  in  the  middle  of  the  kitchen  floor,  tugging  at  his 
chin  whisker,  and  muttering  exclamations  indicative  of 
mental  disturbance.  A  minute  or  two  later,  he  tiptoed 
to  the  door  of  the  dining  room  and  looked  in. 

The  housekeeper  was  sitting  in  the  rocker  by  the  win- 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

dow.  The  afternoon  sun  was  shining  in  through  the 
panes  and  the  light  glistened  upon  her  wet  cheeks.  She 
had  been  crying.  Something,  pity  or  sympathy  or  some 
other  strong  feeling,  gave  a  tremendous  twist  to  the  cap 
tain's  heartstrings.  He  felt  an  unreasonable  but  almost 
uncontrollable  desire  to  walk  in  and  tell  her  not  to  cry, 
that  everything  was  going  to  be  all  right  for  her,  that  he 
would  see  that  it  was. 

Of  course  he  did  not  do  anything  of  the  kind.  What 
he  did  was  to  step  back  and  knock  at  the  panel  of  the 
half-opened  door.  The  housekeeper  turned  her  head. 

"I — I  just  wanted  to  say  I  was  goin'  down  street  a 
spell,"  stammered  Noah.  "I'll  be  home  'long  about  sup 
per  time.  And — and — er — er — Mrs.  Mayo " 

"Yes?"  wearily. 

"You — you  needn't  worry  about  what  you  said  to  me ; 
it's  all  right.  !And  I'm  mighty  glad  you  and  me  had 
this  talk." 

It  was  a  considerably  disturbed  and  troubled  Captain 
Noah  Newcomb  who  walked  thoughtfully  down  to  the 
village.  Before  reaching  the  Corners  he  turned  to  the 
right  and,  with  hands  in  his  pockets,  walked  on  along  the 
Bay  road  to  the  cold-storage  plant.  Just  before  he 
reached  the  new  building  he  saw  a  man  striding  rapidly 
toward  him.  As  they  approached  each  other  he  recog 
nized  Mr.  Balaam  Griggs. 

"Afternoon,  Balaam,"  said  the  captain. 

Mr.  Griggs'  response  was  a  brief  nod  and  morose 
grunt,  as  different  from  his  usual  suave  greeting  as  could 
be  imagined.  He  was  scowling  savagely  and  he  strode 

132 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

on  without  waiting  to  shake  hands  or  exchange  a  word. 
Captain  Noah  could  not  understand  it. 

He  found  Irving  Clifford  standing  by  the  door  of  the 
engine  room  at  the  cold-storage  plant.  Irving,  himself, 
looked  a  trifle  ruffled. 

"Humph!"  exclaimed  the  captain,  after  a  look  at  his 
friend;  "you  and  Balaam  been  passin'  the  compliments 
of  the  season,  have  you  ?" 

Clifford  stared  at  him  in  astonishment. 

"How  in  blazes  did  you  know  ?"  he  demanded. 

"Oh,  I  just  put  this  and  that  together,  same  as  the  old 
woman  made  the  mince  pie,"  was  the  answer.  "I  met 
Balaam  a  minute  ago  and  I  noticed  his  face  had  turned 
sour,  and  when  I  got  here  I  found  yours  was  some  cur 
dled.  So  I  judged  maybe  you  and  he  had  been  swappin' 
regards." 

"Humph !  Well,  you  are  right,  we  have.  That  is,  he 
has  given  me  his.  What  is  the  matter  with  the  old 
fellow;  is  he  crazy?" 

"No-o,  no.  Whatever  else  Balaam  Griggs  is  he  ain't 
crazy.  Crazy  folks  are  apt  to  do  things  that  haven't  got 
any  reason  in  'em.  And  whenever  our  old  messmate  Ba 
laam  does  anything  you  can  bet  your  hull  and  cargo 
there's  a  reason  for  it — and  most  generally  it's  a  reason 
that  you  can  get  interest  on.  What  ailed  him  this  after 
noon?  Of  course,"  he  added,  hastily,  "if  it's  anything 
that  ain't  any  of  my  business,  why  just  tell  me  to  clap 
on  hatches  and  heave  ahead  to  Jericho.  I  ain't  tryin'  to 
shove  my  jibboom  into  your  affairs;  I  hope  you  under 
stand  that." 

The  young  man  colored  a  little  and  looked  rather  em- 

-33 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

barrassed.  "Of  course  I  understand  that,  Captain  New- 
comb,"  he  said.  "And — and —  Oh,  well,  I  don't  know 
why  I  shouldn't  tell  you.  I  suppose  you've  guessed  it, 
anyway.  Mr.  Griggs  and  I  disagreed  concerning  my 
visits  to  his  house.  He  doesn't  seem  to  care  for  my 
society." 

"Or  he  doesn't  care  for  his  stepdaughter  to  care  for  it, 
eh?  ...  And  I  know  that  ain't  any  of  my  business, 
either.  Excuse  me,  will  you,  Irve?  I  have  a  habit  of 
talkin'  too  much,  even  when  I'm  asleep." 

"That's  all  right,  Captain.  It's  no  secret,  I  imagine. 
It's  pretty  hard  to  keep  a  secret  in  Trumet.  Yes,  Mr. 
Griggs  disapproves  of  my  calling  upon  or  even  speaking 
with  Miss  Barstow." 

"Told  you  so  just  now,  did  he?" 

Clifford  smiled.  "He  did,"  he  said.  "He  told  me  at 
least  that." 

"Sho!  I  want  to  know!  And  what  did  you  tell  him? 
If  that  ain't  askin*  too  much." 

There  was  a  crisp  sharpness  in  the  tone  of  the  young 
man's  answer,  although  he  was  smiling  still. 

"I  told  him,"  he  said,  "that  so  far  as  calling  at  his  house 
was  concerned  I  should  not,  of  course,  do  so  in  the  fu 
ture  ;  but  that  I  should  continue  to  meet  and  speak  with 
Miss  Barstow  until  the  young  lady  herself  told  me  not 
to." 

Captain  Noah  grinned. 

"That  must  have  been  as  soothin'  to  him  as  a  dose  of 
blue  vitriol  tea,"  he  observed. 

"It  was.     He  said  a  good  many  more  things  then." 

"Shouldn't  wonder.    And  you?" 

134 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

"I  didn't  say  so  many.  The  conversation  was  rather 
one-sided." 

He  ceased  speaking  r.nd  looked  off  across  the  bay.  The 
captain,  after  a  glance  at  his  face,  made  another  remark, 

"Say,  son,"  he  queried,  "how  bad  would  you  damage 
my  hull  and  standin'  riggin'  if  I  should  ask  you  some- 
thin'  that  was  less  my  business  than  anything  I've  asked 
yet?" 

Clifford  laughed  shortly.  "I  should  probably  not  at 
tempt  damaging  it  at  all,"  he  replied.  "After  my  success 
in  holding  in  during  my  recent  conversation  with  Griggs, 
I  have  considerable  confidence  in  my  powers  of  suppres 
sion.  Ask  whatever  you  please,  Captain.  I  don't  prom 
ise  to  answer.'" 

"That's  right,  that's  right.  Don't  never  sign  articles 
till  you  know  where  the  ship's  bound.  I've  got  a  reason 
for  askin',  and  whatever  you  say,  if  you  do  answer,  will 
never  get  out  from  under  my  decks.  I  may  talk  a  good 
deal,  but  when  it's  needful  I've  got  as  good  a  keep-stiller 
as  any  man  you  ever  saw." 

"That's  all  right.  I  know  you  fairly  well  by  this  time, 
Captain  Newcomb.  Ask  your  question." 

"Well— er— well,  son,  is— is  there  anything  serious  be 
tween  you  and  Mary  Barstow?  I  mean  are  you  just 
friends  and  cal'latin'  to  be,  or— or— Lord!  It  sounds 
more  cheeky  to  say  out  loud  than  it  was  to  think.  Don't 
you  answer  a  word,  Irve ;  just  tell  me  to  shut  up  and  then 
forget  I  said  it." 

The  engineer  was  silent  for  a  moment,  still  gazing  out 
across  the  bay.  But  his  answer,  when  he  gave  it,  was 
conclusive  enough. 

135 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

"If  Miss  Barstow  will  have  me,"  he  said,  quietly,  "I 
mean  to  marry  her." 

The  captain  nodded.  "Bully  for  you,  son!"  he  said. 
"Judgin'  from  the  little  I've  seen  and  the  lot  I've  heard 
you're  goin'  to  get  a  mighty  fine  young  woman.  I  sartin 
do  congratulate  you." 

"You'd  better  wait.    I  haven't  got  her  yet." 

"Well,  then,  I'll  wait.  But  I'll  tell  you  why  I  asked. 
First,  though,  I'll  ask  another  question.  Does  Balaam 
know  how  you  feel?" 

"I  told  him  just  now." 

"And  'twas  after  that  that  he  blew  the  safety  gauge 
clean  off  his  biler,  I  presume  likely." 

"It  seemed  to  make  him  absolutely  furious." 

"Um-hm.  Now  why?  You're  a  respectable  young 
man — barrin'  that  you  keep  company  with  me,  of  course. 
And  your  wages  are  good,  and  your  prospects  better. 
You  can  support  a  wife,  can't  you?" 

"In  moderate  comfort,  I  hope — yes." 

"Humph!  As  much  comfort  as  she's  liable  to  get  in 
Balaam's  Windsor  Castle,  I  shouldn't  wonder.  Now 
then,  why  don't  Balaam  want  you  to  marry  her?" 

"I  don't  know.    Doesn't  like  me,  I  suppose." 

"No  reason  why  he  shouldn't.  And  besides  you  ain't 
the  only  one  he  hasn't  liked.  Don't  you  flatter  yourself, 
young  feller,  that  you're  the  only  young  male  critter 
that's  been  tryin'  to  keep  company  with  Mary  Barstow. 
Nigh's  I  can  learn  you're  the  only  one  she'd  look  at 
more'n  once,  but  there's  been  others  fishin'  on  the  Griggs 
shoals.  And  Balaam  had  the  same  row  with  each  one 
of  them  that  he's  had  with  you.  There  ain't  anything 

136 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

personal  in  it;  he  ain't  got  anything  special  against  you. 
It  seems  to  be  that  he  don't  want  his  stepdaughter  to 
marry  anybody.  Now  why  don't  he?" 

"Don't  know,  I'm  sure.  Probably  he  doesn't  want  to 
give  her  up." 

"Don't  you  believe  it !  Balaam  never  had  anything  yet 
that  he  wouldn't  give  up  for  money.  He'd  sell  his  under- 
flannels  and  try  to  grow  wool  on  his  shoulder-blades  if 
you  paid  him  enough  for  it.  He's  always  complainin' 
about  what  an  expense  Mary  is  and  how  cheap  he  could 
keep  house  if  he  didn't  have  her.  Anybody,  knowin' 
him,  would  naturally  cal'late  he'd  be  tickled  to  death  to 
have  a  nice,  promisin'  young  chap  like  you  take  her  off 
his  hands.  But  he  ain't.  Why?" 

"Oh,  don't  ask  me,  Captain  Newcomb.  I  tell  you  I 
think  he's  crazy." 

"Then  your  thoughts  are  sprung  out  of  plumb,  my 
son.  Balaam  ain't  crazy,  don't  you  think  he  is.  No, 
there's  a  nigger  in  that  woodpile,  too,  same  as  there  is  in 
the  one  I'm  anchored  alongside  of.  That  pile  of  mine 
is  full  of  'em,  a  darky  to  every  stick.  And  just  as  I  think 
I've  got  hold  of  the  foot  of  one  of  'em  I — I  find  I  ain't 
at  all.  Just  now,  for  instance,  I  had  a —  "Look  here, 
son ;  you've  been  tellin'  me  some  of  your  private  affairs. 
Do  you  want  to  hear  some  of  mine?  I've  just  got  to 
talk  'em  over  with  somebody.  Do  you  want  to  have  me 
tell  you  just  why  I'm  down  here  in  Trumet;  the  real 
reason;  the  whole  of  it?  All  right,  then,  you  listen,  and 
if  you  see  any  light  in  the  darkness,  sailor,  as  the  hymn 
tune  used  to  say,  for  thunder  mighty's  sake,  sing  out. 
I'm  lost  in  the  fog  ahead  and  astern." 

137 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

He  began  and  told  the  whole  story.  Of  Obadiah's  let 
ter,  of  the  ex-cook's  mysterious  reticence  and  evident 
trouble,  of  Balaam  and  Cousin  Calvin,  then  of  his  own 
suspicions  of  Mrs.  Mayo,  and  finally  of  the  interview  he 
had  just  had  with  that  lady,  the  impersonal  parts  of  it, 
that  is. 

"So  you  see,"  he  said,  in  conclusion,  "here  I  am  worse 
off  than  I  started.  I  figgered,  naturally,  that  she  must 
be  crooked  and,  like  the  rest  of  'em,  was  there  to  work 
poor  old  Obe  out  of  his  last  cent.  And,  just  as  I  was 
congratulatin'  myself  that  the  puzzle  was  'most  done — 
She  was  the  piece  that  wouldn't  fit;  the  one  I  spoke  to 
you  about,  remember —  Well,  just  as  I  was  pattin'  my 
self  on  the  back  that  I'd  got  her  at  last  where  she  be 
longed,  she  turns  to  and  upsets  the  whole  checkerboard 
again.  She  orders  me  to  do  what  I've  been  workin'  to 
do  from  the  beginning  chuck  the  whole  crew  of  'em  over 
the  side,  herself  along  with  the  rest.  Orders  me  to  do  it 
— she  does!  Why?  I  ask  you  why?" 

Clifford  shook  his  head.  "It's  a  queer  business,"  he 
said. 

"Ain't  it  now?  It's  as  queer  as  old  man  Patterson's 
cat,  and  that  slept  in  the  chicken  coop  and  barked  like  a 
dog.  Don't  you  see,  Irve?  Don't  you  see?  I've  been 
all  wrong — about  her,  I  mean.  She  ain't  crooked  at  all. 
She  never  did  act  anything  but  honest  and  I  used  to 
think  that  was  funny  or  else  just  her  smartness.  But  it 
wan't  either;  'twas  just  her  natural  way  of  actin'.  She 
is  honest !  I'll  bet  my  mittens  and  wear  my  hands  bare 
footed  if  it  ain't  so.  She's  an  honest,  square  woman, 
and  a  mighty  fine  one.  She  knows  Obe  is  bein'  skinned ; 

138 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

she  believes  she's  helpin'  skin  him.  And  yet — and  yet, 
by  thunder  mighty,  she  stays  right  there!  She  won't 
quit,  but  she  tells  me  to  put  her  out.  Why  ?  Why  ?  Why  ? 
Oh,  this  shakes  my  confidence,  this  does.  A  little  more 
of  it  and  I'll  go  back  to  Porto  Reek  and  climb  a  palm 
tree  and  swop  my  head  for  a  cocoanut.  Tut!  tut!" 

Irving  slapped  his  friend  on  the  back. 

''Cheer  up,  Captain,"  he  said.  "You'll  get  the  answer 
by  and  by.  It's  a  good  thing  for  your  friend  Burgess 
that  you  are  his  friend ;  that's  evident.  And,"  he  added, 
reflectively,  "have  you  thought  that — well,  she  is  related 
to  Griggs;  he  brought  her  to  fill  the  position  of  house 
keeper  there.  Have  you  thought  that  possibly  he — that 
there  may  be  something " 

Noah  interrupted  him.  "Have  I  thought?"  he  re 
peated.  "Son,  I've  thought  my  upper  deck  loose  and 
started  the  plankin'  in  the  hold.  But  in  my  opinion 
you've  put  your  finger  on  the  right  button  and  it's  got 
'Balaam  Griggs'  lettered  on  it.  Maybe  it'll  jingle  some 
day  or  other  when  I  press  it  the  right  way.  But  don't 
it  beat  all,"  he  added,  "how  deceivin'  appearances  are 
sometimes?  Here's  this  little  single-sticked,  cat-rigged 
town  of  Trumet;  you'd  never  think  a  mystery  could  be 
hid  anywheres  aboard  of  it,  could  you?  And  I've  been 
here  only  a  month  or  so  and  I've  bumped  into  no  less 
than  three  already.  Three  and  a  half,  you  might  say. 

"The  first,"  he  went  on,  "is  Obe  himself.  What's  he 
got  up  his  sleeve?  What's  his  trouble  and  why  is  he 
hidin'  it  from  me?  Number  two  is  the  Mayo  woman. 
She's  honest,  she's  capable,  she  knows  she  shouldn't  be 
workin'  Obe  or  workin'  for  him.  Then  why  don't  she 

10  139 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

quit?  Is  Balaam  makin'  her  stay  there?  She  ain't  the 
kind,  or  don't  act  like  the  kind,  to  be  scared  of  him  or 
anybody  else.  And  number  three  is  this  queer  business 
of  Balaam's  along  of  his  stepdaughter.  Why  don't  he 
want  her  to  get  married?  There's  a  nice  netful  of  pic 
ture  puzzles,  ain't  it?  Let's  see  you  put  'em  together, 
son." 

Clifford  laughed.  Then  he  said:  "You  spoke  of  three 
and  a  half  mysteries,  Captain.  What  is  the  half?" 

"The  half?  Oh,  Cousin  Calvin  is  the  half.  Why 
should  a  swell  club  feller  like  him  be  down  here  in  Tru- 
met  loafin'  around,  towin'  a  dog  on  a  chain?  His  health ? 
Bosh !  Oh,  well,  he  don't  fret  me  any.  I'll  have  his  meas 
ure  most  any  time  I  want  to  take  it,  I  cal'late.  There, 
son,"  he  added,  drawing  a  long  breath,  "let's  forget  the 
whole  three  and  a  half  for  a  spell.  You're  through  work 
for  the  afternoon,  ain't  you?  Good!  Let's  go  up  to  the 
garage  and  get  that  car  of  mine,  that —  What  was  it 
Wentworth  called  her  first  time  he  saw  her?  Pancake? 
No,  Panhard,  that  was  it.  Let's  go  get  the  Panhard  and 
take  a  ten-mile  cruise  around  the  roads.  Maybe  'twill 
blow  some  of  Balaam's  fog  out  of  our  heads.  What  do 
you  say?" 


CHAPTER   XI 

IT  was  on  the  morning  following  this  discussion  be 
tween  Captain  Noah  and  the  engineer  that  two  of 
the  people  discussed,  namely,  Mr.  Balaam  Griggs 
and  Miss  Mary  Barstow,  had  a  conversation  of  their 
own.  It  was  a  spirited  conversation  on  Balaam's  part 
and  a  provokingly  cool  and  determined  statement  of  fact 
on  the  part  of  the  young  lady. 

"You'll  do  as  I  tell  you!"  shouted  Griggs.  "You 
won't  see  nor  speak  to  that  feller  again." 

His  stepdaughter  did  not  answer.  She  was  clearing 
away  the  breakfast  dishes  and  did  not  even  glance  in 
the  direction  of  the  irate  Balaam. 

"Do  you  hear?"  repeated  the  latter,  angrily. 

No  reply. 

"Do  you  hear,  I  say?"  roared  Mr.  Griggs. 

Mary  went  on  collecting  the  dishes  on  the  table. 

"Yes,"  she  said,,  calmly,  "I  hear.  So  do  the  neigh 
bors,  I  should  imagine." 

"Darn  the  neighbors !    That's  what  I  say  about  them." 

Miss  Barstow  smiled  slightly.  "I  wonder  if  you  ever 
heard  what  they  say  about  you,"  she  observed. 

Balaam  choked  and,  figuratively  speaking,  clawed  the 

141 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

air,  seeking  to  grasp  a  satisfactory  retort.  Failing  to  lay 
hands  upon  such  a  one  he  changed  his  tactics.  After 
all,  it  was  best  not  to  quarrel. 

"Now — now,  Mary,"  he  pleaded,  "why  don't  you  act 
nice  and  not  so  cross-grained  and  unlikely?  Why  do 
you  always  want  to  do  just  what  I  don't  want  you  to 
do?" 

Mary,  having  carried  the  silverware  and  dishes  to  the 
kitchen,  paused  momentarily  in  the  doorway. 

"Why  do  you  always  want  me  not  to  do  what  I  wish 
to  ?"  she  asked. 

"I  don't!  I  don't!  You  can  do  anything  you  want 
to — anything  in  reason,  that  is.  All  I  ask  is  that  you 
just — just  do  same  as  I  want  you  to,  that's  all.  That's 
all  I  want." 

The  young  lady  laughed,  merrily.  The  laughter  served 
to  bring  back  all  of  Balaam's  irritation.  His  florid  face 
blazed  redder  than  ever. 

"Laugh,  will  you?"  he  demanded.    "Laugh?" 

"I  certainly  shall  when  you  make  such  ridiculous 
speeches." 

"I  want  to  know!  Well,  the  last  time  I  see  that  Clif 
ford — er — er — sculpin  he  wan't  laughin'.  I  told  him 
what  I  thought  of  him.  I  told  him  if  I  ever  see  him 
hangm'  around  this  house  and  tryin'  to  coax  you  into 
marryin'  him  I'd " 

"You  didn't!" 

Miss  Barstow  was  not  laughing  now.  She  had  entered 
the  room  and  was  facing  her  stepfather.  Her  eyes  when 
they  met  Balaam's  seemed  to  promise  anything  but 
humor. 

142 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

"You  didn't  say  that!"  she  repeated.  "You  didn't 
say  that  to  him !" 

Balaam  was  a  bit  nervous,  but  his  anger  was  so  great 
that  it  overbore  his  prudence  for  the  moment. 

"Yes,  I  did,  too !"  he  shouted.  "  Twas  last  night  I 
said  it  to  him.  Says  I,  '/  don't  want  you  round  there 
and  my  daughter  she  don't  and '  " 

Miss  Barstow  interrupted,  and  her  tone  was  so  cold 
and  clear  that  each  syllable  falling  upon  Mr.  Griggs'  tor 
rid  temper  should  have  sizzled  like  a  water-drop  on  a 
hot  stove. 

"I  think  you  and  I  may  as  well  have  a  final  and  com 
plete  understanding/*  she  said.  "It  is  evidently  quite 
time.  I  have  been  keeping  house  for  you,  as  you  know, 
because  my  mother  asked  me  to,  asked  me  when  she 
was  very  ill,  just  before  she  died.  I  have  tried  to  make 
you  comfortable,  or  as  comfortable  as  I  could  with  the 
means  you  provided." 

"Yes,  yes,  that's  all  right,  Mary,  I  ain't  sayin' " 

"Wait.  I  have  put  up,  for  Mother's  sake,  with  a 
great  deal  of  annoyance  and  humiliation.  You  have  as 
sumed  a  sort  of — of  guardianship  over  me  which  I  do 
not  recognize  in  the  least " 

"Guardian!  Why,  Mary,  if  I  ain't  your  guardian, 
who  is?" 

"No  one — now.     I  am  twenty-one." 

"Don't  make  no  difference.    I'm  your  father,  ain't  I  ?" 

"No,  you  are  not.  And  you  have  no  control  over  my 
actions  or  my  friendships.  I  shall  do  exactly  as  I  please 
and  I  shall  see  and  speak  with  whom  I  please.  This 
house,  I  know,  is  yours.  My  only  right  here  is  that  you 

143 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

have  begged  me  to  stay.     Now  I  think  it  best  that  I 
should  go." 

"Go?    Go  where?" 

"I  don't  know.     To  Boston,  perhaps." 

"To— to  Boston!  What  for?  What— what'll  you 
live  on?" 

A  disinterested  listener  might  have  noticed  a  note  of 
eager  anxiety,  almost  of  fear,  in  Mr.  Griggs'  tone  as  he 
asked  this  question. 

"What  have  you  got  to  live  on,  in  Boston  or  any 
wheres  else?"  he  repeated. 

"Why,  nothing." 

"I  guess  nothing!"  The  note  changed  to  triumphant 
relief. 

"But  I  can  earn  my  living.  I  have  friends  there  who 
will  help  me  to  find  employment.  I  think  I  should  enjoy 
working  there;  it  would,  at  least,  be  a  pleasant  change 
from  this  sort  of  thing.  I  think  we  may  as  well  con 
sider  it  settled.  I  shall  go." 

She  turned  and  walked  into  the  kitchen.  Balaam 
glowered  after  her  and  stood  in  the  middle  of  the  dining 
room  floor  tugging  at  his  whiskers.  He  was  evidently 
thinking  hard  and  his  thoughts  were  disturbing.  After 
a  few  moments  of  thought  and  whisker  pulling  he  shuf 
fled  over  to  the  kitchen  door. 

"Say,  Mary,"  he  said,  "I — I'm  sorry  I  said  that  about 
young  Clifford.  I  guess  maybe  I  was  a  little  mite  hasty 
there.  You  ain't  goin'  to  leave  me  and  go  up  to  no  Bos 
ton,  course  you  ain't." 

Mary,  busy  at  the  sink,  answered  without  looking  at 
him. 

144 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

"I  am,"  she  said. 

"No,  no,  you  ain't.  What'll  I  do  if  you  go?  Didn't 
your  ma  make  you  promise  you'd  stay  here  and  look 
after  me?  She  thought  a  sight  of  me,  your  ma  did. 
She  used  to  say  to  me,  'Balaam,'  she'd  say,  'Mary's  a 
good  girl;  she'll  look  after  you  in  your  old  age.'  She 
knew  what  a  turrible  lot  of  store  I  set  by  you,  Mary." 

"Yes,  that  is  very  evident." 

"Well,  now,  'tis.  That's  the  reason  I  can't  bear  to 
think  of  your  gettin'  married  to  Irve  Clifford,  or  any 
body  else.  I  can't  bear  to  have  you  go  off  and  leave  me, 
Mary.  If  your  ma  knew — if  she's  where  she  can  see  us 
and  knows  you're  cal'latin'  to  leave  me,  she " 

"Oh,  don't!"  wearily. 

"Well,  'twould  break  her  heart,  same  as  the  very  idee 
of  it  is  breakin'  mine.  You  think  it  over  now,  Mary. 
And — and  as  for  this  Clifford  feller — well,  we  won't 
talk  about  him." 

"No,  we  will  not,"  with  decision. 

"If — if  you  want  to  see  him  once  in  a  while " 

"I  shall  see  whom  I  wish,  when  I  wish." 

"Yes,  yes.  Well,  we  won't  fight,  anyhow.  And  you 
won't  go  to  Boston  and  leave  your  poor  old  dad  here 
alone.  Your  mother,  she " 

"Stop !    If  you  don't  stop  I  shall  go  now." 

"All  right,  I'll  stop.  Er  —  er  —  Mary,  I'm  going  to 
Ostable  today.  Got  some  business  over  there.  I  shan't 
be  back  for  dinner.  You  be  a  good  girl  now,  won't 
you?  Don't  do  nothin'  foolish,  nothin'  you'll  be  sorry 
for  later  on." 

145 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

His  stepdaughter's  answer  was  brief  but,  from  his 
viewpoint,  scarcely  satisfying. 

''It  will  not  be  necessary,"  she  said,  dryly.  "I  have 
enough  to  be  sorry  for  now." 

Balaam  emerged  from  the  house,  angry  through  and 
through.  As,  swearing  under  his  breath,  he  slammed  the 
door  behind  him,  a  whiff  of  cigarette  smoke  tickled  his 
nostrils  and,  turning,  he  saw  Mr.  Calvin  Wentworth 
seated  on  the  washbench  below  and  to  the  right  of  the 
kitchen  window.  Cousin  Calvin  was,  as  usual,  a  miracle 
of  raiment  and  savoir  faire.  His  appearance  would 
have  struck  envy  to  the  souls  of  the  young  men  pictured 
in  the  ready-made  clothing  advertisements. 

"Morning,"  observed  Mr.  Wentworth,  cheerfully. 

Griggs  grunted.  He  wondered  how  long  the  immacu 
late  New  Yorker  had  occupied  the  washbench.  The 
kitchen  window  was  open  and  the  recent  conversation 
with  his  stepdaughter  had  been  of  a  somewhat  personal 
nature.  He  looked  suspiciously  at  Cousin  Calvin,  and 
the  latter  gentleman  regarded  him  with  languid  self- 
possession. 

It  was  Mr.  Wentworth  who  spoke  next.  He  blew  a 
ring  of  cigarette  smoke  into  the  air  and  observed :  "Sorry 
I  haven't  my  card  with  me.  I  seem  to  remember  my 
name;  is  your  face  familiar?" 

Balaam's  lower  jaw  dropped.  "Eh?"  he  demanded. 
"What  are  you  sayin'?  What  kind  of  talk — I  don't 
know's  I  just  understood  you,  Mr.  Wentworth." 

Cousin  Calvin  rose  from  the  bench.  "Oh,  you  do  re 
member  me,  then!"  he  drawled.  "Charmed,  I'm  sure." 

"Remember  you!"  stammered  the  bewildered  Griggs, 

146 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

"Course  I  remember  you !  Why  shouldn't  I  remember 
you,  for  the  land  sakes  ?  'Twas  only  last  night  I  see  you. 
What  are  you  doin';  havin'  fun  with  me,  or  what?" 

Mr.  Wentworth  rose  and  tossed  away  his  cigarette. 
"Judging  by  your  face,  old  scout,"  he  said,  "I  couldn't 
have  fun  with  you;  you  wouldn't  go  halves.  You  look 
peeved,  Uncle,  peeved.  What  is  it;  the  usual  morning 
dark-brown  ?  Hang-over  from  the  Trumet  Midnight 
Frolic,  aM  all  that  sort  of  thing?" 

Mr.  Griggs  smiled  sourly.  "You're  a  funny  feller, 
ain't  you  ?"  he  said.  "Got  up  airly,  didn't  you  ?  Thought 
you  was  goin'  to  meet  me  down  to  Ziby's?" 

"I  was,  but  I  rose  with  the  lark  this  morning.  'Double 
up,  Lucy,  the  sun  is  in  the  sky'  and  that  sort  of  thing. 
I  strolled  down  to  the  gentle  Ziba's — holy  smoke,  what 
a  name! — laid  violent  hands  on  his  new  benzine  bus  and 
here  I  am.  Shall  we  start?" 

"Sho !    Got  the  car  already,  have  you  ?" 

The  car  was  Mr.  Ziba  Rogers'.  Balaam,  who  had 
business  at  his  lawyer's  in  Ostable,  had  arranged  to 
borrow  it  for  the  day.  The  automobile  was  almost  new 
and  Ziba  had  not  been  keen  for  lending  it.  But  Mr. 
Griggs,  along  with  his  other  antiques,  possessed  a  mort 
gage  on  the  Rogers  homestead.  Therefore  Ziba's  disin 
clination  to  lend  yielded  under  discretionary  pressure. 
Having  secured  the  car,  Balaam  found  himself  in  need 
of  a  driver.  Mentioning  that  need  in  the  Burgess  sitting 
room  an  evening  or  two  before  he  had  been  somewhat 
surprised  when  Cousin  Calvin  volunteered  his  services. 
Wentworth  had  driven  and  owned  numberless  cars,  so 
he  gave  the  company  to  understand ;  he  fancied  he  might 

147 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

rather  enjoy  taking  a  flier  on  the  road  again.  Captain 
Newcomb  solicitously  asked  if  he  cal'lated  his  health 
would  stand  it.  Cousin  Calvin  opined  that  it  would. 

The  car  was  now  standing  in  the  road  by  the  Griggs 
front  gate.  Mr.  Wentworth  led  the  way  toward  it  and 
Balaam  followed.  The  pair  climbed  to  the  seat,  Cousin 
Calvin  took  the  wheel,  pressed  the  starting  button,  and 
they  began  to  move.  In  three  minutes  they  were  mov 
ing  much  faster,  in  five  faster  still,  in  ten 

"Hold  on !"  protested  the  alarmed  Mr.  Griggs.  " What 
in  time  are  you  doin' ;  tryin'  to  fly  ?  Don't !  Hold  on,  I 
tell  you !" 

The  car  whizzed  up  a  hill,  turned  a  corner  on  two 
wheels,  and  shot  along  the  next  level. 

"Hold  on !"  roared  Balaam  again.  "Don't  you  hear 
me  ?  I  say,  hold  on !" 

Mr.  Wentworth  took  one  hand  from  the  wheel  in 
order  to  find  and  open  his  cigarette  case.  "Good  ad 
vice,"  he  drawled.  "I  am  holding  on,  rather.  Are 
you?" 

Lighting  the  cigarette  necessitated  a  momentary  pause 
in  the  car's  cyclonic  progress.  The  passenger  availed 
himself  of  the  opportunity;  he  opened  the  door. 

"By  godfrey's  domino!"  he  panted,  mopping  a  per 
spiring  forehead,  "don't  you  dare  to  start  up  that  thing 
again.  You  hold  still  now  till  I  get " 

He  paused,  his  foot  groping  for  the  step.  His  driver 
regarded  him  with  interest. 

"Get  where?"  he  asked. 

"Out!"  roared  Balaam,  throwing  off  the  laprobe  and 
standing  erect.  "Out  of  this  everlastin'  machine !" 

148 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

"What  are  you  getting  out  for?    Tired  of  riding?" 

"I'm  tired  of  ridin'  with  a  crazy  lunatic.  My  godfrey's 
domino !  Why,  we  never  missed  that  last  fence-post  by 
more'n  two  inches !" 

"So?    Well,  it  Isn't  your  fence,  is  it?" 

"Ain't  my  fence!  Ain't  my By  time,  you  are 

crazy!" 

He  turned  and  strode  off.  Cousin  Calvin  indulged  in 
a  quiet  chuckle  and  then  called  after  him. 

"Here!  .  .  .  Uncle!  .  .  .  Griggs!"  he  shouted.  "Wait! 
Come  back!" 

Balaam  answered  over  his  shoulder.  "You  go  to  the 
devil!"  he  snarled. 

Wentworth's  foot  pressed  the  accelerator;  in  a  mo 
ment  the  car  was  beside  its  former  passenger. 

"Better  go  there  with  me,  hadn't  you?"  suggested 
Cousin  Calvin.  "What's  the  use  of  walking  to  the  devil 
when  you  can  go  in  up-to-date  fashion,  with  bells  on? 
There,  there!  don't  bend  your  face  like  that,  it  might 
crack.  Jump  in !  I  was  only  trying  the  machine  out  a 
bit.  I'll  slow  down,  of  course.  Anything  to  oblige." 

Balaam  hesitated  and  was  inclined  to  argue,  but  as 
his  companion  solemnly  promised  not  to  drive  faster 
than  twenty  miles  an  hour  and  offered  to  let  the  passen 
ger  guess  the  speed  himself,  he  reluctantly  consented  to 
try  another  short  stretch.  "Just  to  see  whether  you're 
permanent  loony,  or  only  by  spells,"  he  explained. 

Apparently  the  lunacy  was  merely  temporary,  for  the 
car's  progress  for  the  next  five  miles  was  at  a  perfectly 
safe  and  sane  rate  of  speed.  Balaam  was  too  nervous 
and  apprehensive  to  offer  anything  in  the  way  of  con- 

149 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

versation,  and  Mr.  Wentworth,  although  unruffled  and 
debonair  as  always,  was  not  loquacious.  It  was  not  until 
they  entered  the  four  mile  stretch  of  woods  between 
Bayport  and  Denboro  that  he  became  talkative. 

"Uncle,"  he  observed,  cheerfully,  "I'm  sorry  to  say  it, 
but  I'm  disappointed  in  you,  I  am,  really/' 

"Eh?  What's  that?  What's  comin'  now,  more  crazi- 
ness  ?  How  have  I  disappointed  you,  for  mercy  sakes  ?" 

"You  have.    Uncle " 

"I  ain't  your  uncle,  nor  no  other  relation,  as  I 
know  of." 

"Aren't  you?  Gad,  that's  a  blow!  Well,  never  mind; 
you've  disappointed  me,  uncle  or  not.  I  thought  you 
were  a  dead-game  sport,  and  I'm  afraid  you  are  a  four- 
flusher." 

"A  what?  Now  look  here,  Mr.  Wentworth,  you've 
been  callin'  me  names  all  the  mornin'.  A  joke's  a  joke, 
but " 

Wentworth  calmly  interrupted.  "I  thought  you  were 
a  sport,"  he  went  on,  "and  you're  not,  not  for  a  minute. 
I  speed  up  this  tin  Lizzie  here  a  bit  and  you  want  to  get 
out  and  walk.  For  a  man  who  is  supposed  to  hunt  the 
wild  antique  in  its  lair,  as  you  have  the  reputation  of 
doing,  I — well,  I'm  shocked." 

Most  of  this  airy  persiflage  passed  high  over  the  Griggs 
head,  but  a  little  of  it  flew  low  enough  to  make  a  slight 
impression.  Balaam  looked  rather  foolish. 

"Well,  I  tell  you,  Mr.  Wentworth,"  he  said,  apologet 
ically,  "maybe  I  am  a  little  mite  extry  nervous  this 
mornin'.  That — that  daughter  of  mine,  she  does  rile  me 
when  she  sets  out  to.  She  and  I  had  a — a  little  mite 

150 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

of  a  difference  of  opinion  just  now  that —  What  are 
you  laughin'  at?" 

Cousin  Calvin  was  smiling.  "Oh,"  he  replied,  care 
lessly,  "nothing  in  particular,  except  that —  Well — er — 
when  you  and  she  have  a  real  row  I  wish  you'd  let  me 
know,  will  you?  I  should  like  an  orchestra  chair;  the 
performance  should  be  interesting/' 

His  passenger  regarded  him  sourly.  His  suspicions 
concerning  the  open  kitchen  window  and  the  washbench 
were  confirmed.  He  had  a  huge  respect  for  the  New 
Yorker,  or  rather  for  the  large  fortune  which  the  latter 
was  supposed  to  possess;  but  there  were  limits  to  the 
liberties  which  even  a  rich  man  might  take — especially 
on  this  particular  morning. 

"Humph!"  he  grunted.  "So  you  heard  the  fuss,  did 
you?  Listening  I  presume  likely." 

"No,  it  wasn't  necessary.  I  could  have  heard  it  if  I 
had  been  asleep.  I  could  have  heard  some  of  it  if  I  had 
been  dead." 

He  chuckled.  Balaam  gritted  his  teeth.  "Humph!" 
he  observed,  tartly;  "sounded  funny  to  you,  I  presume 
likely.  Other  folks'  business  is  liable  to  sound  queer  to 
— to  folks  that  ain't  got  no  business  with  it." 

This  shot  glanced  harmlessly  from  the  Wentworth  ar 
mor.  Cousin  Calvin  calmly  steered  the  car  between  a 
vegetable  peddler's  wagon  and  cart  loaded  with  stove 
wood,  missing  each  by  a  scant  three  inches.  During  the 
accomplishment  of  this  feat,  which  called  forth  spirited 
and  personal  comments  from  the  drivers  of  each  ve 
hicle,  the  condescending  smile  did  not  once  leave  his 
face. 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

"Peeved  again,  Unc —  So  sorry  —  Griggs,  I  mean. 
Peeved  again,  eh?"  he  observed.  "Very  foolish,  very 
foolish.  No  use  in  getting  fussed,  my  boy;  although  I 
admit  you  did  have  a  good  excuse.  She  surely  did  make 
you  look  like  a  lead  dime,  and  when  a  dime  is  good  it 
isn't  worth  but  a  third  of  thirty  cents.  I'm  afraid  you 
haven't  had  much  experience  with  women,  old  scout." 

"I  want  to  know !"  sarcastically.    "And  you  have,  eh?" 

"Oh,  a  bit,  here  and  there." 

"Is  that  so !  Well,  you  never  had  no  experience  with 
one  like  that  Mary  Barstow,  leastways  /  never  did,  and 
I've  been  married  twice." 

"What's  the  matter  with  her?  She's  a  clever  girl; 
seems  to  have  a  mind  of  her  own.  And  she's  a  good 
looker.  She's  the  nearest  approach  to  the  blue  ribbon 
winner  in  the  peach  exhibit  that  I've  seen  in  this  county 
fair.  You  can't  drive  a  girl  like  that,  Griggs.  Your 
only  hope  would  be  to  coax  her,  or  to  work  the  diplo 
matic  racket  somehow.  Well,  you  won't  be  troubled 
with  her  much  longer,  I  imagine.  Your  responsibility 
in  that  direction  will  be  relieved." 

If  the  latter  portion  of  these  remarks  had  been  in 
tended  as  an  additional  irritant  to  the  already  raw  tem 
per  of  Mr.  Griggs,  they  achieved  their  aim. 

"What?"  snarled  Balaam.  "Won't  be  troubled ?  Re 
sponsibility  ?  What  do  you  mean  ?  What  are  you  talkin' 
about?" 

Wentworth  glanced  at  him  from  the  corners  of  his 
eyes. 

"Oh,"  he  observed,  lightly,  "I  meant  simply  what  I've 
heard — what  everyone  says,  you  know.  You  know  what 

152 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

I  mean;  you  and  she  were  discussing  it  in  that  little 
family — er — difference  of  opinion  you  mentioned.  From 
all  I  can  gather  she'll  be  taken  off  your  hands  soon.  Our 
cold-storage  friend — er — Clifford,  you  know — he — " 

He  got  no  further.  Mr.  Griggs  proceeded  to  express 
his  opinion  of  Irving  Clifford,  volubly,  forcibly  and  at 
length.  His  companion  listened  until  the  typhoon  had 
spent  a  little  of  its  force,  then  he  broke  in  to  ask  another 
question. 

"What's  the  matter  with  Clifford?"  he  asked.  "He 
seems  a  decent  enough  chap — for  a  burg  like  this.  Why 
have  you  got  it  in  for  him  ?" 

That  didn't  make  any  difference.  Irving  Clifford  was 
a — etcetera,  etcetera.  And  he  should  not  marry  Mary 
Barstow. 

"Why  not?"  inquired  the  blandly  persistent  Went- 
worth.  "She's  bound  to  marry  someone  some  day.  Gad, 
man,  you  can't  expect  to  keep  her  always,  you  know. 
Not  her  variety — not  on  your  life,  not  any.  Why  not 
Clifford  as  well  as  the  next  in  line?  Why  not  the  cold- 
storage  candidate?" 

Mr.  Griggs  proceeded  to  give  other  reasons.  They 
were  noisy  but  not  very  convincing.  Boiled  down,  the 
objections  seemed  to  center  less  on  any  particular  suitor 
than  on  suitors  in  general.  Cousin  Calvin  noted  this. 

"I  see,"  he  said;  "I'm  on.  You  don't  want  the  girl 
to  get  away  from  you  at  all;  want  her  to  stay  at  home 
with  you  and  do  the  clinging  vine  and  sturdy  oak  busi 
ness,  prop  of  your  declining  years  and  all  that.  I  see; 
yes,  yes.  Old  scout,  you  lose;  you  can't  win." 

153 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

"Why?  Why?  Ain't  I  givin'  her  all  the  comforts 
and — and — clothes — and " 

"Back  up.  Clifford  will  give  her  all  the  clothes  and 
comforts,  I  imagine — glad  of  the  chance.  Say,"  turn 
ing  with  a  whimsical  grin  in  his  passenger's  direction, 
"this  is  a  revelation  to  me,  Griggs,  really  it  is.  I  didn't 
know  you  were  such  a  fond  parent.  Just  dying  to  sac 
rifice  your  all  for  the  girl,  eh?  My  ducats  for  my 
daughter!  Gad,  the  young  lady  doesn't  seem  thrilled 
with  your  self-sacrifice.  Judging  by  some  of  the  jslts 
she  handed  you  this  morning " 

"Damn  her!" 

"Eh?" 

"Damn  her,  I  say!  She's  a  sassy,  impudent,  money- 
spendin'  critter.  I  wish  she  was  to  thunder  and  gone! 
I " 

"Whew !  Wait !  I  don't  just  get  you.  I  was  all  set 
to  catch  a  blessing  and  you  toss  over  a  damn.  You  wish 
she  was — where?" 

Balaam  told  where  he  wished  his  stepdaughter  might 
be  transported,,  shouted  it,  in  fact.  His  rage  had  boiled 
over  at  last  and  he  was  forgetting  everything  in  the  joy 
of  expression. 

"I  see.  Well,  why  don't  you  give  her  to  Clifford  and 
tell  him  to  take  her  there?  It  would  be  less  expensive, 
wouldn't  it?  Of  course,  when  I  thought  you  loved  her 
so  devoutly  I " 

"Loved  nothin'!  If  'twan't  for  that  darned  will  she 
could  take  Clifford  or  anybody  else  and  go  to  Joppa  for 
all  I  care.  /  wouldn't  shed  no  tears." 

He  paused,  out  of  breath.    Wentworth  waited  almost 

154 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

a  minute  before  he  spoke  again.  When  he  did  his  tone 
was  very  quiet. 

"What  will?"  he  asked,  gently. 

Balaam  started.  All  at  once  he  seemed  to  realize  that 
his  anger  had  gotten  the  better  of  his  discretion.  The 
red  slid  down  from  his  forehead  and  cheeks ;  for  an  in 
stant  he  was  almost  pale.  He  glanced  apprehensively  at 
his  driver,  but  the  latter  was  innocently  scanning  the 
road  ahead. 

"Oh,  nothing  nothin',"  stammered  Mr.  Griggs.  "There, 
there!"  he  added,  testily,  "let's  change  the  subject,  for 
godfrey's  sakes.  I'm  sick  of  talkin'  about  women's  fool 
ishness." 

So  the  subject  was  changed.  Only  indirectly,  and 
then  only  when  they  were  within  a  few  miles  of  Ostable, 
was  Miss  Barstow's  name  again  mentioned.  Cousin  Cal 
vin,  who  had  done  most  of  the  talking  during  the  lat 
ter  part  of  the  journey,  had  been  inquiring  concerning 
the  old  families  of  Trumet.  The  Griggs  family,  so  bril 
liantly  represented  by  its  present  head,  was  one  of  the 
oldest.  Balaam  knew  every  cousin,  second,  third  or 
fourth,  for  two  generations,  and  had  much  to  say,  gen 
erally  of  an  unpleasant  nature,  concerning  each. 

"Your  wife,  too,  came  of  an  old  Trumet  family,  didn't 
she?"  asked  Wentworth. 

"My  first  wife  did,  she  was  a  Bassett,  same  tribe  as 
Uncle  Labe  Bassett.  My  second  wife,  though,  Mary's 
ma,  she  wasn't  a  Trumeter.  She  belonged  up  to  Wapa- 
tomac,  all  her  folks  came  from  there." 

"How  did  you  happen  to  meet  her?  Are  you  ac 
quainted  in  Wapatomac?" 

11  155 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

"Ain't  now,  much.  I  used  to  be.  I  knew  her  husband 
that  was." 

"Miss  Barstow's  father,  you  mean?" 

"Sartin,  Ira  Barstow;  I  knew  him  fust-rate.  Done 
some  real  estate  tradin'  with  him.  Good  while  ago  that 
was." 

"Did  he  ever  live  in  Trumet?" 

"No,  no.  Lived  in  Wapatomac  most  all  his  life.  Died 
there,  too.  I  helped  his  widow  straighten  out  seme  of 
the  real  estate  deals  he  had — that  was  his  business,  you 
see.  She  and  I  get  acquainted  then.  'Twas  five  year 
afterwards  we  got  married,  though.  The  Barstows 
wan't  Trumet,  not  a  bit  of  'em.  But  the  Pennimans, 
there's  another  old  family.  Why " 

He  discoursed  concerning  the  Pennimans  until  they 
turned  into  the  Ostable  main  street  and  stopped  before 
his  lawyer's  door. 

"I'll  be  in  here  for  quite  a  spell,"  he  informed  his 
companion.  "Got  a  lot  of  fussin'  and  red  tape  about 
foreclosin'  a  mortgage.  Want  to  come  in  and  wait,  do 
you  ?  I  guess  likely  you  can,  if  you  want  to,  but  'twould 
be  kind  of  stupid  for  you,  I  should  say." 

Cousin  Calvin  declined  this  cordial  invitation.  He 
would  walk  about  the  town  and  see  the  lions,  he  said. 
Balaam  informed  him  that  the  "nighest  things  to  lions 
or  any  other  menagerie  critters  in  Ostable  are  them  two 
cast-iron  deers  up  on  Judge  Baxter's  grounds."  Mr. 
Wentworth  said  no  doubt  they  would  do  and  strolled 
away. 

He  did  not  visit  the  Baxter  grounds,  however.  In 
stead,  he  walked  up  the  main  street  until  he  reached  the 

156 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

County  Court  House.  Entering  the  building,  he  sought 
the  office  of  the  Clerk  of  Probate.  The  clerk  was  out, 
but  the  young  man  in  charge  was  willing  to  oblige. 

"You  keep  the  records  here,  don't  you?"  asked  Mr. 
Wentworth.  "Deeds  and  copies  of  wills,  and  so  on?  I 
thought  so.  Well,  I'm  from  the — er — from  the  West, 
you  see,  and  I  am  looking  up  some  old  family  records. 
I  am  interested  in  the  Barstow  family ;  the  branch  which 
used  to  live  in  Wapatomac,  I  believe.  There  was  a  John 
Barstow  and  a — an  Edward  Barstow  and — and  a — oh, 
yes,  an  Ira  Barstow.  It  occurred  to  me  if  I  could  look 
over  some  of  the  Barstow  wills  it  might  help  me  to 
trace " 

And  so  on,  smiling,  urbane  and  graciously  polite.  The 
youthful  representative  of  the  Clerk  of  Probate  felt  quite 
flattered  to  be  on  such  friendly  terms  with  so  distin 
guished  a  visitor.  When  that  visitor  handed  him  a  cigar 
— one  Captain  Newcomb  had  given  him,  Wentworth,  that 
very  morning — he  was  ready  to  turn  the  entire  records 
of  the  county  over  for  inspection. 

"The  only  thing  is,"  he  said,  "these  kind  of  things  are 
all  dated.  If  you  knew  about  what  years  some  of  these 
Barstow  folks  died,  Mister,  I  guess  we  could  locate  'em." 

Mr.  Wentworth  did  a  little  mental  arithmetic.  Mary 
— he  had  heard  her  say  so — was  twenty-one.  He  had 
heard  from  other  sources  that  she  was  but  a  young  girl 
when  her  mother  married  Balaam  Griggs.  He  added, 
substracted,  and  then  took  a  flying  shot. 

"Suppose  we  begin  by  looking  up  one  of  them,"  he 
said.  "John —  No,  he  would  be  too  far  back.  Edward 
would  come  later,  but —  No,  we'll  see  if  we  can  find 

157 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

Ira.  Please  try  and  find  the  will  of  Ira  Barstow  of  Wap- 
atomac,  who  died  in — well,  in  1905  or  6  or  7,  or  there 
abouts." 

When  Cousin  Calvin  emerged  from  the  Court  House 
he  was  smiling  and  there  was  a  satisfied  look  on  his  face. 
He  had  inspected  Ira  Barstow's  will,  also  the  will  of 
Martha  Briggs,  formerly  Martha  Barstow.  He  had  been 
unable  to  locate  the  wills  of  several  other  Barstows,  John 
and  Edward  among  them,  but  he  bore  these  disappoint 
ments  bravely.  He  was  in  serene  good-humor  when  he 
returned  to  the  spot  where  he  had  left  the  motor  car  and 
found  Mr.  Griggs  waiting  for  him  on  the  lawyer's  steps. 

Balaam,  too,  was  in  good-humor.  The  business  at  the 
lawyer's  had  been  entirely  satisfactory.  He  had  secured 
a  desirable  piece  of  property  at  a  small  cost  to  himself 
and,  if  the  former  owners  would  be  obliged  to  give  up 
•what  had  been  the  family  home  for  two  generations, 
that,  obviously,  was  not  Mr.  Griggs'  fault. 

He  and  Mr.  Wentworth  boarded  the  car  again  and 
they  moved  out  of  Ostable  once  more.  Then,  on  the 
Bayport  road,  the  driver  slowed  down  to  a  surprisingly 
moderate  rate  of  speed  and  began  to  talk. 

"Griggs,"  he  said,  "are  you  really  serious  in  your  ob 
jection  to  Clifford's  marrying  your  stepdaughter?" 

"Eh  ?  Am  I  serious  ?  Good  godfrey's  domino !  Have 
I  been  talkin'  as  if  I  was  enjoyin'  it?  Am  I  serious! 
What  in  the  nation?" 

"Oh,  all  right!  Keep  your  kimono  on,  Uncle.  You'd 
like  to  break  off  the  intimacy  between  them,  then?" 

"Would  I  ?    You  show  me  how  to  do  it  and  then  see !" 

"It  shouldn't  be  so  very  hard." 

158 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

"Oh,  shouldn't,  eh?  Humph!  Talk's  cheap.  Any 
kind  of  a  job's  soft  to  the  feller  that  don't  have  to  do  it." 

"Yes,  and  nothing's  much  harder  than  a  bonehead.  If 
it  were  up  to  me  I'd  guarantee  that  she  tied  the  can  to 
our  friend  Clifford  inside  of  a  month." 

"I  want  to  know !  Huh !  Well,  then,  I  wish  'twas  up 
to  you,  that's  all  I've  got  to  say.  How  would  you  do  it  ?" 

"Oh,  I'd  do  it." 

"Yes,  you  would — like  a  hen !" 

"I  beg  your  pardon?" 

"Eh !  What  for  ?  You  ain't  done  nothin'  to  me^  have 
you?  I  said  you  wouldn't  do  what  you  said  you'd  do, 
that's  all." 

"No,  you  didn't.  You  said  I  would  do  it  like  a — like 
a  chicken,  wasn't  it?  What  on  earth  did  you  mean  by 
that?" 

"Eh?  I  said  like  a  hen.  That  means  you  wouldn't 
do  it  at  all." 

Cousin  Calvin  shook  his  head.  "Griggs,"  he  observed, 
"your  conversation  is  scrambled.  I  could  do  it.  Would 
you  like  to  make  a  sporting  proposition  of  it  ?  What  will 
you  bet  that  the — er — friendship  between  Miss  Barstow 
and  Clifford  isn't  ended  inside  of  a  month?  Come,  now, 
be  a  dead  game  one.  Name  your  figure." 

Baalam  regarded  him  with  suspicion. 

"You're  foolin'  again,  ain't  you?"  he  asked. 

"Not  a  bit  of  it.    What  will  you  bet?" 

Mr.  Griggs  scratched  his  chin. 

"I  don't  never  bet,"  he  said,  after  a  moment's  reflec 
tion.  "I  don't  believe  in  it,  'tain't  moral." 

His   companion  laughed   heartily.     "Griggs,"  he   ex- 

159 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

claimed,  "you're  a  wonder.  You're  too  good  to  be  real; 
there  ain't  no  such  animal.  Do  you  know,  just  for  that 
I'm  inclined  to  help  you  out  of  your  scrape.  Do  you 
want  to  get  rid  of  Clifford  very  much  ?" 

''You  bet  your  life  I  do!" 

"Here,  here!  Careful!  Betting  isn't  moral.  Well, 
then,  I'll —  Yes,  I'll  get  rid  of  him  for  you." 

"You  will?    You  will?    Humph!    What  for?" 

"Oh,  just  for  love.  Who  could  help  loving  you,  old 
scout?  'None  knew  him  but  to  love  him,  none  named 
him  but  to '  " 

"Aw,  shut  up  your  foolin'!  What  are  you  goin'  to 
help  me  get  rid  of  Irve  Clifford  for  ?" 

"What  for?  ...  Oh,  you  mean  for  what?" 

"For  what?     For  how  much?    That's  what  I  mean." 

"For  nothing." 

Mr.  Griggs  sniffed  disdainful  unbelief.  "I  know  a 
dum  sight  better,"  he  declared.  "Nobody  in  this  world 
does  anything  for  nothin'.  What  do  you  want  for  doin* 
it?  Takin'  it  for  granted  you  can  do  it  at  all,"  he 
added,  "which  I  doubt." 

Wentworth  whistled  a  few  notes  of  a  popular  song, 
"I  don't  want  anything,"  he  said,  "except " 

"Ah,  ha!    Yes— except " 

"Except  the  fun  of  doing  it.  Perhaps  I  don't  love 
brother  Irving  myself — perhaps." 

"You  don't!  I  thought  you  and  him  was  kind  of 
chummy.  You  go  to  see  him  down  to  the  cold-storage, 
and  all." 

"I  have  to  go  and  see  someone,  occasionally;  and  in 
this  God-forsaken  hole  choice  is  limited.  But  I  knew 

160 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

him  in  New  York  and —    Well,  never  mind  that.     Do 
you  want  me  to  can  him  for  you?" 

"Yes,  sir-ee !" 

"Good !    It's  a  deal.    Shall  we  shake  on  it?" 

He  took  one  hand  from  the  steering  wheel  and  ex 
tended  it  in  his  passenger's  direction.  Mr.  Griggs'  huge 
paw  reached  forth  and  surrounded  it. 

"And  now,"  demanded  the  owner  of  the  paw,  "how 
are  you  goin'  to  do  it,  eh?" 

.  Cousin   Calvin   whistled   another  verse   of    the   song. 
Then  he  said : 

"That,  my  old  college  chum,  is  my  business  for  the 
present.  Yours  is  to  keep  quiet  and  wait.  When  it  is 
your  turn  to  jump  I'll  pull  the  string." 

Balaam  nodded. 

"All  right/'  he  agreed.  "I'll  be  quiet,  don't  you  fret. 
But — but  I  wish  I  knew  what  in  time  you  are  settin' 
out  to  do  this  for." 

His  driver  sang  a  line  of  the  song  he  had  been 
whistling. 

"  'It  is  you,  my  darling,  it  is  you/ "  he  hummed, 
sweetly. 

That  evening  he  wrote  a  letter  and,  the  next  mornings 
posted  it. 


CHAPTER   XII 

MR.  BURGESS  threw  down  the  book  in  disgust. 
"Well,  I  snum !"  he  exclaimed.  "If  that  don't 
beat  all !  Advertise  from  Dan  to  Beersheby  that 
when  you  read  one  of  these  b-b-bub-books  you'll  know 
more'n  Dan'l  Webster  and  Moses  and  the  Ten  Com 
mandments  rolled  into  one,  and  yet — and  yet,  by  cu-cuk- 
cracky,  the  fust  word  I  go  to  look  up  ain't  in  it  at  all." 

Captain  Newcomb,  sitting  in  the  rocker  by  the  window 
and  looking  out  over  the  bay,  rosy  with  the  after-sunset 
glow,  turned  and  regarded  the  little  man. 

"What  book's  that  you're  heavin'  round  so  reckless, 
Pbe?"  he  asked. 

Obadiah  kicked  at  the  discarded  volume. 

"Encyclopedy,"  he  replied,  crossly.  "Cost  much  as  two 
or  three  dollars  a  p-p-piece,  them  books  do,  they  tell  me, 
and  there's  about  forty  of  'em  in  a  set ;  come  in  schools, 
they  do,  like  b-b-bluefish.  And  there  ain't  nothin'  in 
'em !  By  cracky,  it  does  m-m-make  a  feller  mad  the  way 
he's  skinned  out  of  his  money." 

He  gave  the  book  anothf    thrust  with  his  foot. 

"Humph!"  observed  Noah.  "There's  lots  of  things  in 
this  world  that  cost  money  but  ain't  much  use.  A  good 

162 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

many  rich  men's  sons  would  fill  that  bill.  But  I  wouldn't 
kick  the  thing,  if  I  was  you ;  playin'  football  with  a  three- 
dollar  book  seems  to  me  kind  of  an  expensive  game. 

Mr.  Burgess  sniffed.  "Oh,  'tain't  my  book,"  he  said. 
"I  b-b-borrowed  it  off  the  Methodist  minister." 

However,  he  stooped  and  picked  it  up. 

"What  word  was  you  lookin'  for?"  asked  the  captain. 

"Copper.  That's  a  common  enough  word,  ain't  it? 
Ought  to  be  in  any  decent  cyclopedy,  hadn't  it?" 

"It  sartin  had.  I  guess  likely  'tis,  too.  Let's  see  that 
book.  Humph!  'tis  the  C.  one.  I  thought  maybe  you 
was  huntin'  for  it  under  K." 

Obadiah's  feelings  were  hurt.  "K!  the  idee!"  he  ex 
claimed.  "I  guess  I  shouldn't  hunt  for  c-c-copper  under 
no  K.  I've  been  to  school  same  as  you  have,  Cap'n 
Noah." 

His  companion  nodded.  "Cal'late  that's  so,  Obe,"  he 
said.  "However,  I  judge  you  didn't  hunt  very  far  for 
it  under  C.  Anyhow,  here  'tis,  two  or  three  pages  of  it." 

Mr.  Burgess  rose  and  looked  over  his  friend's  shoul 
ders.  "Why,  it's  got  two  p's  in  it!"  he  declared,  with 
evident  astonishment.  "Sho!" 

He  took  the  book  from  the  captain's  hands  and  sat 
down  to  read.  Noah  watched  the  process,  a  slow  and 
apparently  painful  one,  for  a  few  moments.  Then  he 
chuckled  quietly  and  asked  :  "Obe,  what  set  you  to  readin' 
up  about  copper?" 

Obadiah  absently  raised  his  head. 

"Eh?"  he  queried. 

"What  are  you  studyin'  up  about  copper  for  ?  Cal'latin' 

163 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

to  buy  a  few  mines,  was  you  ?  Or  have  you  been  specu- 
latin'  heavy  in  stock  lately?" 

These  questions  were  intended  as  jokes,  but  Mr.  Bur 
gess  did  not  laugh,  nor  even  smile.  On  the  contrary,  he 
straightened  in  his  chair,  the  book  slipped  from  his  knees 
to  the  floor,  and  he  sat  there,  pallid,  and  staring  at  his 
friend  as  if  the  latter's  harmless  and  rather  feeble  at 
tempt  at  humor  had  been  a  pistol  shot  fired  at  his  head. 

Captain  Noah  in  return  stared  at  him. 

"What  in  the  world?"  he  demanded. 

Obadiah's  chin  quivered.     He  essayed  to  speak. 

"I—I    What—    What?"  he  faltered. 

The  captain  sprang  to  his  feet. 

"He's  got  a  shock!"  he  cried.  "He's  had  a  stroke! 
Mrs.  Mayo!  Mis'  Melissy!" 

But  Obadiah  waved  both  hands  in  frantic  protest. 

"Don't!"  he  begged.  "Don't— don't  holler!  I— 
I— I " 

"Holler!  I'll  do  more'n  holler." 

He  was  on  his  way  toward  the  kitchen,  but  Obadiah 
seized  his  coat  tail. 

"Don't !  Don't !"  he  commanded.  "  Tain't  nothin'. 
I'm  all  right!  I  be,  honest!  I " 

"All  right  f  Why,  you're  white  as  my  shirt  this  min 
ute.  You're  sick !  Anybody  can  see  that.  What  is  it  ? 
Where  does  it  hurt  you?" 

He  was  bending  over  his  friend,  hastily  trying  to  un 
button  the  latter's  waistcoat.  Obadiah  pushed  him  away. 

"It  don't  hurt  me,"  he  protested.  "There  ain't  nothin' 
to  h-h-hurt.  I'm  all  right." 

"You  are,  eh  ?"  Noah  stopped  and  looked  into  his  face. 

164 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

"Humph!"  he  grunted,  after  a  brief  inspection;  "well, 
you  do  seem  to  be  little  mite  more  human  and  less  like  a 
— a  jelly  fish.  What  in  the  nation  set  you  off  that  way?" 

Burgess  was  obviously  struggling  to  get  control  of 
himself.  He  reached  for  his  handkerchief  and  mopped 
his  perspiring  forehead. 

"  'Tain't  nothin',"  he  explained,  avoiding  his  compan 
ion's  eye.  "It's  just  a — a — a  kind  of — of  a  spell  as  you 
might  say.  I'm — I'm  s-s-subject  to  'em." 

"Oh,  you  are !"  Captain  Noah  regarded  him  with  sus 
picion.  "Subject  to  'em,  are  you?  Well,  Obe,  if  /  was 
subject  to  anything  like  that  I'd  get  a  doctor — or  a  keeper 
— or  somethin'.  How  long  have  you  been  subject  to 
'em  ?  This  is  the  first  attack  you've  had  since  I've  been 
here." 

Mr.  Burgess,  still  dabbing  at  his  forehead  with  the 
handkerchief,  explained  that  he  hadn't  had  none  lately. 
"It's — it's  somethin'  I  eat,"  he  added.  "Don't  talk  about 
it.  Hearin'  you  makes  me  nervous." 

"Want  to  know !  Well,  seeiri  you  makes  me  nervous. 
What  did  you  swallow  that  set  you  to  shakin'  like  that — 
an  earthquake?  There,  there,  don't  go.  I  won't  pester 
you.  Stay  where  you  are." 

Obadiah  stayed,  although,  judging  from  his  manner, 
he  would  have  preferred  to  go.  He  picked  up  the  ency 
clopedia  once  more  and  pretended  to  read,  although  the 
deepening  dusk  made  reading  more  and  more  impossible. 
Captain  Noah  filled  and  lit  his  pipe  and,  leaning  back  in 
his  chair,  regarded  the  little  man  steadily.  At  last  the 
latter  spoke  again. 

"Cap'n,"  he  said,  fidgeting  with  the  leaves  of  the  vol- 

165 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

time  in  his  lap,  " — er — er — what  made  you  ask  me  that 
question  ?" 

"What  question?" 

"Why — why,  that  question  about  my  b-b-buyin'  stocks 
or  such  foolishness  ?  That  was  a  f-f-f unny  thing  to  ask, 
seemed  to  me." 

"Urn.  Yes,  I  could  see  it  seemed  awful  funny  to  you, 
Obe.  I  never  saw  anybody  get  so  much  fun  out  of  any 
thing  as  you  did  out  of  that." 

"Ha,  ha!"  Obadiah's  laugh  was  rather  forced.  "I 
know,"  he  went  on,  "but  I  didn't  mean  f-f-funny,  I  meant 
queer.  Queer  you  should  ask  me  if  I'd  bought  stocks. 
Who  told  you  such  a  thing  as  that?" 

"Told  me !  Nobody  told  me,  of  course.  I  was  just 
foolin'  with  you,  that's  all." 

"Wras  you?"  Mr.  Burgess  seemed  to  doubt  the  state 
ment.  "Was  you  ?  Yes,  I  presume  likely  you  was.  But 
— but  co-cuk-copper  stock,  that  was  a  queer  thing  to 
think  of.  Who  put  that  silly  notion  in  your  head  ?" 

"Nobody.  It  came  there  of  itself ;  saw  there  was  a  loft 
to  let  and  moved  in,  I  shouldn't  wonder.  By  the  way, 
you  haven't  answered  my  question.  What  set  you  to 
lookin'  up  copper  in  that  book?" 

"Nothin',  nothin'.  I  just  took  a  notion,  that's  all."  He 
put  down  the  encyclopedia  and  rose.  "I  caFlate  I  won't 
read  any  more,"  he  said,  hastily.  "Guess  likely  I'll  go — 
go  down  to  the  p-p-post  office  or  somewheres." 

"Shall  I  go  along  with  you,  Obe?"  suggested  the  cap 
tain. 

Obadiah  apparently  did  not  hear ;  at  all  svents  he  made 
no  answer. 

166 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

For  a  few  minutes  after  he  had  gone  Captain  Noah  sat 
there,  puffing  at  his  pipe.  Then  he  stood  up,  put  the  pipe 
in  his  pocket  and  walked  briskly  to  the  kitchen.  Mrs. 
Mayo  was  just  wiping  the  last  of  the  supper  dishes. 

"Obadiah's  gone  to  the  post  office,  ain't  he  ?"  asked  the 
captain.  "Notice  which  way  he  went?" 

Joe  Kenney  came  into  the  kitchen  just  then  and  it  was 
he  who  answered  the  question. 

"I  don't  think  he's  gone  to  the  office,  Cap'n  Newcomb," 
he  said.  "I  saw  him  walkin'  along  the  path  back  of  the 
barn  just  now." 

The  path  behind  the  barn  skirted  the  edge  of  the  bluff 
above  the  bay.  It  was  a  short  cut  to  the  beach  and  the 
fish  houses,  but  it  most  certainly  did  not  lead  to  the  post 
office.  Captain  Noah  climbed  the  low  fence  by  the  pigsty 
and  set  off  along  the  path.  It  was  quite  dark  now  and 
very  quiet.  The  ripples  splashed  and  chuckled  on  the 
shore  below,  and  except  for  the  barking  of  a  distant  dog, 
there  were  no  other  sounds. 

The  captain  walked  briskly  on.  He  meant,  if  possible, 
to  overtake  his  friend  before  the  latter  reached  the  vil 
lage.  He  climbed  another  fence,  descended  a  little  hill,, 
and  there  stopped  short.  At  the  top  of  the  knoll  before 
him,  where  the  path  wound  close  to  the  cliff  edge,  some 
one,  a  summer  resident  probably,  had  at  some  time  or 
other  erected  a  rustic  seat.  On  that  seat,  his  huddled 
form  silhouetted  against  the  evening  sky,  was  a  man. 
And  as  Noah  stood  there,  looking  and  listening,  he  heard 
the  sound  of  a  groan. 

The  captain  tiptoed  carefully  up  the  little  hill,  bent  over 

167 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

the  figure  on  the  rustic  bench,  and  gently  laid  a  hand  on 
its  shoulder. 

"It's  all  right,  Obe,"  he  said,  quietly.  "Don't  be  scared. 
It's  just  me;  it's  all  right." 

Mr.  Burgess  was  scared,  or  at  least  tremendously 
startled.  He  would  have  fallen  from  the  seat  and,  as 
likely  as  not,  over  the  edge  of  the  bluff,  had  not  the  cap 
tain's  big  hand  held  him  fast. 

"Steady,  Obe,  steady,"  said  Noah.  "Set  right  where 
you  are.  I  was  in  hopes  I'd  catch  you  afore  you  got  too 
fur,  and  now  that  I  have,  I  ain't  goin'  to  let  you  go.  Set 
still,  shipmate.  It's  high  time  you  and  me  had  a  talk." 

Obadiah  gasped  and  stammered.  He  had  been  in  a 
highly  nervous  state  before  his  friend's  unexpected  ap 
pearance  ;  now  he  was  on  the  verge  of  collapse. 

"Steady  as  she  is,  Obe,"  ordered  the  captain.  "As  I 
say,  it's  high  time  you  and  me  had  a  talk.  Twas  plain 
enough  you  had  a  load  of  trouble  under  your  hatches, 
but  you  would  persist  in  keepin'  those  hatches  closed. 
Now  that  I've  got  one  peek  at  your  cargo  you  might  as 
well  let  me  go  over  the  whole  manifest.  What  kind  of 
copper  stocks  have  you  been  buyin'  and  how  much  money 
have  you  lost?" 

Obadiah  turned,  stared  at  him,  and  then,  before  his 
companion  realized  what  he  was  about,  leaped  to  his  feet 
and  started  to  run.  Fortunately  for  Captain  Noah's 
plans,  made  during  the  recent  few  minutes  of  meditation 
in  the  sitting  room,  he  did  not  get  entirely  free.  The  cap 
tain  pulled  him  back,  forced  him  down  upon  the  seat  and 
held  him  there. 

"No  use,  Obe,"  he  said.    "I  ain't  been  towin'  my  rheu- 

168 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

matiz  so  fur  across  these  damp  fields  just  to  start  it  after 
you  on  another  lap.  You  set  still  and  tell  me  all  about 
it.  Set  still,  you  little  shrimp !  I  swan  to  man,  you've  got 
more  wiggles  to  you  than  an  eel  in  a  barrel  of  sweet  ile! 
Hold  still !  don't  be  so  foolish." 

Mr.  Burgess  held  still,  that  is,  he  was  held,  but  his  pro 
tests  were  voluble.  For  the  first  time  during  their  ac 
quaintance,  as  Captain  Noah  said  afterwards,  he  did  not 
have  time  to  remember  to  stutter. 

''Let  me  go,"  he  ordered.  "Let  me  go,  Cap'n  Noah. 
What  have  you  been  followin'  me  this  way  for?  What 
are  you  hangin'  onto  me  for?  Let  me  go,  I  tell  you." 

His  captor  was  imperturbable.  "Sorry  I  can't  oblige, 
Obe,"  he  said.  "I  don't  know  as  it's  really  soaked  down 
through  your  main  deck  yet,  but  I'm  doin'  my  best  to  be 
your  friend.  That's  what  I  came  to  Trumet  to  be,  and 
it's  the  job  I've  had  on  my  hands  ever  since.  I'm  goin' 
to  find  out  what  sort  of  a  scrape  you're  in,  and  then,  if  I 
can,  I'm  goin'  to  help  you  out  of  it.  Seems  to  me  that 
now's  as  good  a  time  as  any  for  you  to  tell  me  the  yarn. 
What  do  you  think?" 

Whether  this  appeal  to  reason  had  the  desired  effect  or 
not  is  immaterial,  for  something  did.  Mr.  Burgess 
ceased  struggling  and  began  to  groan. 

"I — I  know  you  think  I'm  a  p-p-plaguey  fool,"  he 
wailed.  "I  know  you  do.  I — I  s'pose  Balaam  told  you 
about  my  buyin'  it  and — and " 

"Sshh!  Balaam  told  me?  Balaam  Griggs  ain't  told  me 
anything.  What's  he  got  to  do  with  it  ?" 

"He  sold  it  to  me.  He  must  have  told  you,  else  how 
did  you  know?  I  never  said " 

169 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

"Wait  a  minute !  Heave  to !  What  was  it  Balaam  Griggs 
sold  you?" 

"Why,  the  copper  stock,  the  hundred  shares  Ostrich 
Minin'  and  Smeltin'  of  Lake  Superior  Company.  Fifty 
dollars  a  share  I  paid  and — and  he  said  'twas  liable  to 
go  to  a  hundred  and  f-f-fifty  'most  any  minute." 

"Did,  eh?  Um-hm.  Well,  maybe  'twill— if  it  don't 
get  off  the  course.  Sometimes  those  sure-tning  clippers 
run  on  the  rocks." 

"Eh  ?  On  the  rocks !  Oh,  don't  talk  so,  Noah  !  Don't ! 
I — I  put  five  thousand  dollars  into  that  stock.  Five  thou 
sand!  You  don't  cal'late  anything's  goin'  to  happen  to 
it,  do  you  ?  My — my  Lord  above,  if  it  does,  what'll  I  do  ? 
I  don't  sleep  none  nights  thinkin'  of  it.  I  got  scared  soon 
as  I  done  it.  That  was  why  I  sent  for  you.  Oh,  Cap'n 
Noah,  I — I  can't  get  along  and  p-p-pup-pay  my  bills  as 
'tis;  I'm  runnin'  astern  every  minute.  If  I  lose  that 
money —  O,  o-oh!" 

He  wrung  his  hands.    The  captain  patted  his  shoulder. 

"There,  there,  Obe !"  he  said.  "You  ain't  on  any  rocks 
yet,  maybe ;  perhaps  you  ain't  goin'  to  be.  You  may  be 
on  your  way  to  millions,  for  all  I  know.  There,  there! 
stop  wavin'  your  flippers  and  spin  me  the  yarn ;  tell  me 
the  whole  of  it  from  stem  to  stern." 

So  Obadiah  told  it.  The  telling  took  a  good  while, 
owing  to  the  narrator's  tendency  to  stammer  and  his 
fondness  for  repetition  and  ejaculation.  It  seems  that 
the  purchase  of  stock  had  been  made  about  a  month  be 
fore  Noah  received  the  letter  summoning  him  to  Trumet. 
Mr.  Burgess  and  his  friend  Griggs  had  discussed  finan 
cial  matters,  incomes,  dividends  and  the  like.  "We  talked 

170 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

about  them  kind  of  things  pretty  often,"  explained  Oba- 

diah.      "Balaam   he  had   money   and  he   knew   I   had, 
,     »» 

"Knew  how  much  you  had,  I  presume  likely?"  inter 
rupted  the  captain. 

"Sartin.  I  told  him.  Bein'  wuth  twelve  thousand  and 
more  ain't  nothin'  to  be  a-sh-sh-shamed  of,  is  it?" 

"No,  no.  Long  as  you  are  worth  it,  it  ain't.  Heave 
ahead  with  your  yarn." 

When  Mr.  Griggs  learned  that  his  friend  was  receiving 
only  six  per  cent  interest  on  his  money  he  was  shocked 
and  pained,  particularly  when  told  that  Mr.  Burgess 
never  was  tempted  to  do  what  he,  Balaam,  termed  "turn 
it  over." 

"He  said  he  was  always  'turnin' '  his  money  over,"  de 
clared  Obadiah.  "Never  let  it  lay  idle,  as  you  might  say. 
He  just  kept  her  busy,  turnin'  over  and  turnin'  over,  and 
whenever  he  see  a  g-g-good  investment  he  turned  it  into 
that.  Understand  what  he  meant,  don't  you,  Cap'n?" 

The  captain  nodded.  "Um-hm,"  he  said.  "I  cal'late 
I  understand  what  he  meant.  Go  on." 

"I'm  a-goin'.  Well,  of  course,  hearin'  all  that  talk  made 
me  kind  of — of  uncontented  myself.  I  kind  of  got  to 
hankerin'  to  t-t-tut-turn  over  some  of  my  capital." 

"Some  of  your  what?" 

"Some  of  my  ca-ca-capital.  That's  what  Balaam  calls 
it,  means  money  and — and  such,  you  know.  He  says 
rich  folks  never  call  their  money  money,  always  call  it 
capital." 

Obadiah  had  yearned  for  the  "turning  over"  of  his 
capital,  also  for  the  eight,  ten  and  twelve  per  cent  divi- 
12  171 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

dends  his  financial  mentor  spoke  of  as  so  plentiful  pro 
vided  one  was,  like  himself,  "in  on  the  know."  Then  he 
spoke  of  lucky  turns  in  the  stock  market,  of  doubling 
one's  investment,  of  mines — and,  at  last,  of  the  Ostrich 
Copper  and  Smelting  Company  of  Lake  Superior.  "If 
a  feller  had  the  ready  money  to  put  into  it/'  whispered 
Mr.  Griggs,  in  the  strictest  confidence,  "and  could  get  a 
holt  of — say — fifty  or  a  hundred  shares  of  that  Ostrich 
Minin' —  Whew!  But,"  he  added,  sadly,  "it's  turrible 
scarce  and  hard  to  get  a  holt  of." 

He  showed  Burgess  clippings  from  New  York  papers 
stating  that  it  was  rumored  in  the  Street  that  wealthy 
and  influential  parties  were  negotiating  for  the  Ostrich 
property.  He  showed  him  records  of  sales  on  the  Curb. 
Those  sales  recorded  the  advance  of  Ostrich  Common 
from  thirty  to  fifty — yes,  even  sixty — dollars  a  share. 
And  at  last  he  came  to  joyfully  whisper  the  news — when 
speaking  of  money  or  its  equivalent  Mr.  Griggs  was  ac 
customed  to  whisper  reverently — that  he  believed  he 
could  "get  a-holt"  of  one  hundred  of  Ostrich  Common  at 
fifty. 

"He  said  'twas  a  chance  wouldn't  come  more'n  once 
in  a  lifetime,"  went  on  Obadiah.  "He'd  been  just  dyin' 
for  me  to  h-h-have  such  a  chance  and  here  'twas.  He'd 
done  it  just  out  of  friendship." 

"Oh,  he  wan't  goin'  to  buy  no — er — Zebra — Ostrich,  or 
whatever  'tis,  then?"  the  captain  broke  in  to  ask. 

"No,  he  couldn't.  His  money  was  all  tied  up  where 
'twas  gettin'  such  big  interest  he  dasent  disturb  it.  But 
he'd  h-h-heard  of  the  chance  and  thought  of  m-m-me 

and " 

172 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

"Yes,  yes,  I  see.  Well,  you  bought  it  and  paid  five 
thousand  for  it.  Where'd  you  get  the  money?" 

"Sold  some  of  the  stocks  Aunt  Sarah  left  me.  They 
wan't  p-p-payin'  but  six,  you  see." 

He  named  some  of  the  securities  he  had  sold.  Captain 
Noah  groaned  when  he  heard  their  names. 

"Don't  tell  me  any  more,"  he  said.  "You've  got  your 
— your  Spread-Eagle — Mackerel  Gull — your  Ostrich,  I 
mean?  Got  the  certificate,  have  you?" 

Yes,  Mr.  Burgess  had  that  at  home.  He  would  be  glad 
to  show  it  to  his  friend. 

"It's  all  made  out,  Cap'n,"  he  declared.  "Got  my 
name  on  it  and  all,  it  has.  It's  a  awful  pretty  c'tif'cate." 

Noah  grinned.  "Well,  I'm  glad  to  hear  that,"  he  said. 
"That's  a  great  comfort.  If  you'd  paid  five  thousand  dol 
lars  for  a  homely  certificate  my  heart  would  have  been 
broke.  Well,  Obe,  I've  heard  so  much,  but  I  ain't  heard 
why  you  sent  for  me.  Wanted  me  to  help  spend  the  ex- 
try  cash  you've  made,  was  that  it?" 

It  was  rather  cruel  sarcasm.  Poor  Obadiah  almost 
wept.  "I— I— I  ain't  made  none,"  he  faltered.  "That  is, 
I  don't  know's  I  ain't,  but  I  don't  know  as  I  have.  I — 
I — I  don't  know  nothin'  about  it.  You  see,  I — I've  been 
lookin'  in  the  papers  every  day,  in  the  p-p-pup-places 
Balaam  showed  me,  but  it  ain't  there." 

"What  ain't  there ;  your  profits  ?" 

"No.  Nothin'  ain't  there.  Ostrich  ain't.  Fur's  I  can 
make  out  by  them  newspapers  nobody  ain't  buyin'  any 
Ostrich,  nor  sellin'  of  it  neither." 

"Humph!  That's  funny.  You  say  there  was  sales  in 
the  paper." 

173 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

"Sartin!  Every  day  there  was.  Balaam,  he  showed 
me  'em." 

"Sho !  Did  you — er — notice  the  dates  of  the  papers  he 
showed  you?  Whether  they  was  that  day's  papers  or 
last  year's?" 

"No,  I  never  noticed  that.  Oh,  Cap'n  Noah,  you  don't 
cal'late " 

"I  don't  cal'late  anything  yet,  Obe.  Any  sort  of  worth 
while  cal'latin'  takes  time.  You  ain't  heard  a — a  squawk 
from  your  Ostrich,  you  say?  Got  any  dividends?" 

"No." 

"Humph!  What's  Balaam  say  about  it?  A  man  that's 
'in  on  the  know'  the  way  he  figgers  to  be  ought  to  give 
you  news  right  straight  from  the  Ostrich — er — roost,  so 
to  speak.  What  kind  of  comfort  does  he  give  you?" 

"Why,  he  says  he  cal'lates  it's  goin'  to  come  out  all 
right.  Give  it  time,  he  says.  Takes  time  for  them  big 
d-d-deals  to  go  through.  He  keeps  tellin'  me  to  keep 
c-c-cuk-cool  and  not  to  say  a  word  about  it  to  a  soul." 

"Especially  me,  eh?    Ever  mention  not  tellin'  me?" 

"Well,  he  did  just  happen  to  say  that — that — maybe 
I'd  better  not  worry  you  with  it." 

"My,  I'm  grateful  to  him.  Anyhow,  your  conscience  is 
clear ;  you  didn't  tell  me ;  I  guessed.  But  you  ain't  told 
me  why  you  sent  for  me." 

And  then  Obadiah's  remnant  of  self-control  left  him. 
The  tears  which  he  had  thus  far  held  back  rolled  unre 
strained  down  his  cheeks.  He  sobbed  forth  his  woes. 
He  was  worried  almost  to  death.  His  income  would  not 
half  meet  his  expenses ;  he  was  running  into  debt ;  he 
didn't  know  what  would  become  of  him. 

174 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

"It  was  hard  enough  to  get  along  afore  I  sold  my  other 
stocks,"  he  wailed.  "Even  then,  the  way  things  cost  now 
adays,  I — I — I  couldn't  hardly  see  my  way  clear.  Not 
after  Cousin  Calvin  came  I  couldn't,  and  Melissy  and 
Joe  and — and " 

"And  me,"  finished  Noah. 

"But — but  you're  different.  I  sent  for  you.  I  thought 
'twould  be  a  good  notion  havin'  C-C-Calvin  come,  'cause 
he  was  a  invalid  and  s-s-so  rich  and  liable  to  die  and  all. 
Then  I  had  to  have  a  housekeeper  to  t-t-tut-take  care  of 
the  tribe  of  us  and  I  had  to  have  her  nephew  'cause  she 
wouldn't  come  unless  he  did.  But  Calvin  he  d-d-didn't 
d-d-die  and  I  d-d-dud-d " 

The  succession  of  d's  was  too  much  for  him ;  the  final 
"didn't"  proved  a  hurdle  which  seemed  likely  to  throw 
him  altogether.  Noah  came  to  the  rescue. 

"Sound  as  if  you  was  runnin'  with  your  cut-out  open, 
Obe,"  he  said.  "Let  me  sing  the  rest  of  the  tune  for  you. 
You  couldn't  get  along  on  what  you  had — not  with  all 
creation  signed  to  sail  with  you — so  when  Balaam  told 
you  about  this  Hummin'  Bird — this  Ostrich,  I  mean — 
you  thought  you  saw  a  chance  to  make  a  lot  more.  Then 
after  you'd  bought  it  you  got  cold  feet,  got  scared  you'd 
done  the  wrong  thing,  and  wrote  to  me  to  come  and  tell 
you  you  hadn't.  Then,  after  I  had  come,  you  got  cold 
feet  again,  got  scared  to  tell  me  for  fear  I'd  tell  you  that 
you'd  made  a  fool  of  yourself.  That's  about  it,  ain't  it?" 

Mr.  Burgess  nodded,  miserably.  "That's  it,"  he 
groaned.  "I  don't  see  how  you  knew  it,  though." 

"Oh,  I'm  awful  smart,  Obe.    My  middle  name  ought 

175 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

to  have  been  Solomon.  Well,  'twas  pretty  much  as  I 
suspected ;  I  knew  there  was  somethin'  up.  .  .  .  Humph !" 

He  paused,  evidently  reflecting.  Obadiah  looked  fear 
fully  up  at  him. 

"Have  I?"  he  faltered. 

"Have  you  what?" 

"Made  a  f-f-fool  of  myself,  same  as  you  said  ?" 

The  captain  started  to  speak  and  then  evidently  thought 
better  of  it.  A  moment  later  he  said : 

"Obe,  my  dad  used  to  tell  about  old  man  Jotham  Hal- 
lett  that  lived  somewheres  down  this  way.  Jotham  and 
his  wife  used  to  squabble  six  days  in  the  week  and  every 
other  Sunday.  One  time  he  took  the  cover  off  the  cistern, 
so's  to  see  how  much  water  there  was  in  it,  and  fell  in. 
His  wife  heard  the  splash  and  came  runnin'.  There  was 
Jotham  standin'  on  tiptoe  with  just  his  face  above  water. 
"Why,  you  old  numskull!'  she  says.  Td  like  to  know 
how  you  ever  got  in  there/  Jotham  blew  the  water  away 
from  his  mouth  and  sputtered  back:  'Don't  you  worry 
about  how  I  got  in,  woman/  he  says.  'It's  goin'  to  strain 
what  little  brains  you've  got  to  know  how  to  get  me  out' 
That's  the  way  I  feel  about  this  Ostrich  business  of  yours, 
Obe — that  and  the  rest  of  it.  We  know  you're  in,  that's 
sartin.  What  we'll  worry  about  now  is  gettin'  you  out." 

"But— but  Cap'n  Noah " 

"Ss-sh !  There,  there !  Don't  get  yourself  all  worked  up 
again.  Your  beloved  messmate,  Griggs,  gave  you  one 
good  piece  of  advice,  no  matter  what  the  heft  of  his  coun 
sel  may  amount  to.  He  told  you  to  keep  cool,  didn't  he? 
Um-hm.  All  right,  you  keep  cool,  Obe;  cool  and  quiet. 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

Don't  you  mention  one  single  word  to  a  soul  about  havin' 
this  talk  with  me.  If  you  do  I'll— I'll— I  swan  I'll  clear 
out  and  leave  you  the  minute  I  hear  of  it." 

"Oh,  I  won't,  Cap'n.  You  know  I  won't.  I'll  swear 
it  on  the  Bible.  I " 

"Never  mind  that.  There  won't  be  any  swearin* 
done  unless  I  think  it's  necessary — and  then  I'm  afraid 
'twill  be  another  kind.  Now  you  heave  ahead  to  the  post 
office,  or  wherever  you  want  to  go.  I'm  goin'  up  to  my 
room  and  think.  Thinkin'  is  a  kind  of  hard  exercise  for 
me  and  I  need  elbow  room  to  do  it  in.  See  you  later, 
maybe.  Good  night." 

"But — but  Cap'n  Noah,  you  ain't  told  me  about  that 
Ostrich  stock.  You  don't  think " 

"Yes,  I  do,  but  I  try  not  to  talk  until  I  have  thought. 
So  long,  Obe." 

The  little  man  made  one  more  attempt. 

"Oh,  Noah,"  he  pleaded,  "you  will  try  to  help  me, 
won't  you?" 

The  captain's  patience  was  plainly  at  an  end.  He 
turned  quickly.  But  when  he  saw  the  simple  childish 
face  upturned  to  his,  he  relented  somewhat.  He  shook 
his  head. 

"Obe,"  he  said,  with  elaborate  gentleness,  "I'm  sorry 
I  didn't  tell  you  that  I  meant  to  have  told  you  that 
when  I  left  you  last  fall  I  told  you  I'd  help  you  any  time 
you  needed  help.  And  I  likewise  meant  to  have  told  you 
that  about  every  day  since  I  came  back  here  I've  been 
tellin'  you  I'd  come  to  help  you.  It's  too  bad  I  ain't  told 
you  how  much  I've  told,  isn't  it  ?  Well,  I'll  tell  you  now. 

172 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

You  want  to  know  if  I'm  goin'  to  try  to  help  you,  do  you? 
Good !     Listen  and  I'll  whisper  it." 

He  stooped,  put  his  lips  close  to  Obadiah's  ear,  and 
shouted  "Yes"  at  the  top  of  his  lungs.  Then  he  strode 
down  the  hill  and  back  to  the  house. 


CHAPTER   XIII 

UPSTAIRS  in  his  room  and  with  the  door  shut  he 
sat  down  to  do  what  he  had  told  Burgess  he 
intended  doing — that  is,  think.  His  temper  was 
still  rather  ruffled.  Not  that  he  had  been  greatly  sur 
prised  at  the  nature  of  his  former  cook's  trouble;  he 
had  from  the  first  suspected  something  of  the  sort.  He 
had  told  Clifford  in  one  of  their  conversations  that  Oba- 
diah  Burgess  was  about  as  fit  to  be  trusted  with  money 
as  a  year-old  child  was  with  the  front  parlor  lookin'- 
glass  and  a  hammer.  But  having  one's  forebodings 
realized  is  not  necessarily  pleasing.  He  was  irritated  to 
think  Obadiah  had  been  such  an  idiot,  and  furiously 
angry  with  Balaam  Griggs  for  taking  such  a  mean  ad 
vantage  of  the  little  man. 

There  was,  of  course,  no  doubt  in  his  mind  that  such 
advantage  had  been  taken.  The  Ostrich  mining  stock 
was,  in  all  human  probability,  worth  little  or  nothing. 
If  it  had  been  very  valuable  Balaam  would  have  kept  it 
himself  instead  of  procuring  it  for  his  "friend."  How 
ever,  there  was  a  chance  that  it  might  not  be  entirely 
worthless,  and  the  first  thing  to  do,  he  decided,  was  to 
find  out  what  it  was  worth  or  likely  to  be  worth,  to  find 

179 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

out,  in  fact,  the  history  and  probable  future  of  the 
Ostrich  Mining  and  Smelting  Company  of  Lake  Supe 
rior.  Having  that  information  he  could  better  decide 
what  to  do  for  Mr.  Burgess  and  to  Balaam  Griggs. 

He  had  a  relative  in  New  York,  a  second  cousin,  who 
was  a  broker  downtown.  This  cousin,  whose  name  was 
Chase,  had  helped  him  before  with  advice  concerning 
financial  matters.  Noah  had  always  consulted  him  when 
making  his  own  investments.  He  took  from  his  bureau 
drawer  pen,  ink  and  paper  and  sat  down  at  the  table  to 
write  a  letter. 

DEAR  GEORGE:  [he  began]  I  want  to  know  something. 
There  are  times  when  even  as  clever  a  feller  as  one  of  your 
relations  comes  to  realize  that  he  is  off  his  course  and  has 
to  speak  for  his  latitude  and  longitude.  I  want  you  to  tell 
me  what  you  know  about  a  copper  stock  called  Ostrich 
Mining  and  Smelting.  I  have  a  notion  that  last  name 
ought  to  be  "Smelling"  because,  unless  I  am  a  whole  lot 
mistaken,  one  deal  that  has  been  put  through  in  it  is  pretty 
rank  fishy.  You  need  not  telephone  the  asylum,  George, 
because  I  ain't  the  one  that  was  in  the  deal.  But 

He  had  written  so  much  when  there  came  a  knock  at 
the  bedroom  door. 

"Cap'n  Newcomb,"  said  Mrs.  Mayo,  "Mr.  Clifford  is 
downstairs  and  he  says  he'd  like  awful  to  see  you.  He 
says  if  you've  gone  to  bed " 

"To  bed!  Land  sakes,  no!  I  ain't  gone  to  bed  yet. 
What  does  he  think  I  am,  a  pullet?  Course  I'll  see  him, 
glad  to." 

"Then  I'll  tell  him  you'll  be  right  down?" 

180 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

"No,  you  tell  him  to  come  up  aloft  here,  if  you'd  just 
as  soon." 

When  Irving  entered  the  room  the  captain  greeted 
him  with  a  broad  grin. 

"Glad  to  see  you,  son,"  he  said.  "I  was  just  thinkin' 
I'd  have  somethin'  to  tell  you  when  I  did  see  you.  Looks 
as  if  I'd  fitted  in  another  piece  of  that  puzzle  of  mine. 
I.  ...  Eh?  Why,  you  look  as  if  you  had  somethin'  to 
tell  me.  What's  the  matter,  Irve?" 

The  young  man  certainly  did  look  as  if  he  had  some 
thing  to  tell  and  as  if  that  something  was  anything  but 
pleasant.  He  threw  himself  into  the  chair  his  friend 
pushed  forward,  but  waved  aside  a  proffered  cigar. 

"No,  thanks,  Captain,"  he  said,  gloomily,  "I  don't 
feel  like  smoking." 

"Don't,  eh?  Well,  now,  don't  you  think  if  you  tried 
it  you'd  feel  more  like  it?  My  troubles  are  kind  of  like 
a  ham  or  a  herrin',  they're  better  smoked.  Perhaps 
yours'll  be." 

Clifford  smiled  in  recognition  of  the  pleasantry,  but 
the  smile  was  a  faint  one.  However,  he  took  the  cigar, 
gripped  it  between  his  teeth  and,  having  lighted  it,  puffed 
savagely. 

"Bad  news?"  asked  Noah,  after  a  short  silence  on  the 
part  of  both  men. 

Clifford  shook  his  head.  "I  don't  know  that  one  could 
call  it  news  exactly,"  he  said,  "but  it's  bad  enough." 

"Humph!  Nobody  dead,  but  somebody  ought  to  be. 
Is  that  it?" 

"That's  it.     Or  part  of  it." 

"Sho !    Feel  like  tellin'  me  who?" 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

"Can't  tell  you.    I  don't  know.    If  I  only  did  I'd ' 

His  fists  clenched.  The  captain  regarded  him  sympa 
thetically,  but  asked  no  more  questions.  It  was  Clifford 
himself  who  resumed  the  conversation. 

"Captain,"  he  said,  "you're  a  good  fellow,  did  you 
know  it?  Nobody  but  you  would  have  let  me  lug  my 
grouch  in  here  and  behave  in  this  way  without  worrying 
me  to  death  to  find  out  what  it  was  all  about.  The  rea 
son  I  haven't  told  you  yet  is — is " 

"There,  there,  Irve!  You  ain't  got  to  tell  me,  you 
know." 

"I  know,  but  I'm  going  to.  That's  what  I  came  here 
for;  I've  got  to  talk  it  over  with  somebody.  I  can't  go 
away  tomorrow,  to  Chicago,  and  leave  things  as  they  are, 
without  a  word  to  anyone.  I  can't !  I  won't !" 

Captain  Noah  was  surprised.  "You're  goin'  to  Chi 
cago — tomorrow?"  he  cried. 

"Yes.  I  told  you  I  should  have  to  go  soon,  you  re 
member." 

"Sartin,  but  I  didn't  think  'twas  as  soon  as  all  that.'* 

"Neither  did  I  until  I  got  the  telegram  this  morning. 
Y«c,  I  must  go,  and  I  shall  probably  be  there  for  some 
time.  The  firm  has  a  big  contract  there  and  the  chap 
who  has  been  in  charge  is  ill  with  typhoid.  So  they  sent 
for  me.  The  work  here  can  be  left  all  right.  I  shouldn't 
mind  going  ordinarily,  but  now " 

He  did  not  finish  his  sentence,  but  relapsed  again  into 
silence.  His  expression  was  proof  sufficient  that  his 
trouble,  whatever  it  might  be,  was  serious. 

"Well/'  he  resumed,  a  moment  later.  "I  may  as  well 
begin,  I  suppose.  It's  confoundedly  hard  to  tell.  It 

182 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

isn't  a  thing  a  fellow  would  tell,  ordinarily,  unless  it 
might  be  to  his  father  or  brother  or  someone  like  that. 
However,  my  father  is  dead  and  my  only  brother  is  in 
Frisco.  And  you — well,  I  haven't  known  you  very  long, 
but— but " 

The  captain  helped  him  out.  "Why  don't  you  adopt 
me  as — as  a — well,  as  sort  of  a  step-uncle,  Irve?"  he  sug 
gested.  "That  is,  if  you're  needin'  relations  just  now,  as 
you  say  you  are.  I'll  be  proud  and  you  won't  be  obliged 
to  tell  anybody,  you  know." 

Clifford  laughed  shortly.  "I'll  accept,"  he  said,  "all 
but  the  'step'  part  of  it.  I've  just  had  an  experience 
with  a  stepfather,  and  that's  sufficient." 

Noah  nodded.  "Um,  I  see,"  he  said.  "Balaam 
again." 

"He  is  only  part  of  it.  If  he  were  all —  But  there, 
I'll  tell  you  and  get  it  over  with." 

That  afternoon  while  he  was  at  the  cold-storage  plant 
a  boy  had  brought  him  a  note  the  contents  of  which  sur 
prised  him  greatly.  It  was  from  Balaam  Griggs,  and  re 
quested  him  to  call  at  the  Griggs  house  immediately,  as 
the  writer  had  something  important  to  say  to  him.  Con 
sidering  that  Balaam  had  forbidden  him  the  house  and 
he  had  not  been  there  for  a  fortnight,  the  invitation 
seemed  strange.  However,  he  went. 

Balaam  had  received  him  in  the  sitting  room.  Mary, 
too,  was  there. 

Griggs  looked  very  severe  and  self-righteous ;  his  step 
daughter  angry  and  indignant.  Before  the  former  could 
say  a  word  the  young  lady  burst  out  with  a  denial  that 
she  had  had  any  part  in  summoning  him,  Clifford,  there. 

183 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

"I  want  you  to  understand,  Irving,"  she  said,  "that  I 
do  not  believe  a  word  of  it,  that  I  know  it  is  not  true 
and  that  I  am  sure  the  whole  thing  is  merely  a  ridiculous 
attempt  on  Mr.  Griggs'  part  to  bring  about  a  quarrel  be 
tween  you  and  me." 

Here  Clifford,  having  told  so  much,  reddened  a  little, 
appeared  confused  and  then  blurted  out :  "You  see,  Cap 
tain  Newcomb,  I — •  Well,  perhaps  I  ought  to  say — ought 
to  tell  you  that  since  our  former  talk  on  this  subject 
JVIiss  Barstow — Mary — and  I  have  had — had  had — well, 
we  had  reached  an  understanding,  and  she — she " 

The  captain  waited  to  hear  no  more.  He  sprang  from 
his  chair  and,  smiling  broadly,  extended  a  hand. 

"Good  enough,  son!"  he  cried,,  heartily.  "I  congratu 
late  you !  Shake !" 

But  his  visitor  refused  to  shake.  Instead,  he  frowned 
and  said  gloomily :  "Better  keep  your  congratulations  un 
til  you  hear  the  rest  of  the  story.  Thank  you  just  the 
same,  of  course." 

Mary's  declaration  had  stirred  Balaam  to  high  indig 
nation.  He  scorned  her  base  insinuations,  not  in  those 
words,  of  course,  but  in  his  own.  When  she  announced 
her  intention  of  leaving  the  room  he  commanded  her  not 
to  do  so. 

"I  tell  you  to  stay  right  here,"  he  said.  "You  don't 
believe  what  this  letter  says  is  true,  eh  ?" 

"I  know  it's  not,"  scornfully. 

"No,  you  don't.  Why,  you  ain't  read  it  yet.  And  we 
don't  either  of  us  know  it  is  true,  neither,  but  we'd 
ought  to  know.  All  I  want  is  for  this  young  feller  him- 

184 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

self  to  tell  me  whether  'tis  or  not.  That's  the  first  thing 
I  want.  If  he  says  'tain't  true,  then " 

Irving  had  interrupted  here.  "Look  here,  Mr.  Griggs," 
he  said,  crisply,  "perhaps  we  might  get  on  faster  if,  in 
stead  of  preaching  a  sermon  beforehand,  you  told  me 
the  text.  Apparently  that  letter  has  something  to  say 
about  me.  What  is  it  ?  Don't  go,  Mary ;  I  want  you  to 
stay." 

So  Mary  stayed.  And  Balaam,  after  loftily  proclaim 
ing  that  he  might  read  the  letter  aloud,  but  he  wouldn't 
"demean"  himself  to  do  so,  handed  it  to  Clifford,  with 
the  command  that  he  read  it  in  that  manner. 

"Read  it  right  out  loud,"  he  ordered.  "It's  about  you, 
and  I'm  givin'  you  the  chance  to  see  all  the  testimony 
and  prove  yourself  not  guilty  if  you  can.  And  let  me 
tell  you,  young  feller,"  he  declared,  "  'tain't  every  father 
would  do  that.  Now  you  read." 

Here  Captain  Noah's  visitor  seemed  to  find  the  tell 
ing  of  the  story  particularly  hard.  His  embarrassment 
increased  and  he  picked  nervously  at  the  table-cloth  as 
he  proceeded. 

"So  I  took  the  letter,"  he  went  on,  "and — well,  as  soon 
as  I  looked  at  it  I  recognized  the  handwriting.  And  I 
guessed,  or  I  partially  guessed,  what  was  coming.  It 
was  a  surprise  to  me,  of  course,  and  I  was  angry  any 
way,  and — and —  Well,  confound  it,  I  imagine  I  must 
have  looked  and  seemed  like  a  crook  caught  with  the 
goods.  For  a  minute  I  just  held  the  letter  and  stared 
and  stuttered  and  turned  red.  .  .  .  Oh,  hang  it  all,  Cap 
tain  !  the  telling  of  this  thing  is  pretty  nearly  as  hard  as 
the  thing  itself." 

185 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

"Don't  tell  unless  you  want  to,  Irve,"  cautioned  Cap 
tain  Noah,  sympathetically. 

"But  I  do  want  to.  I  came  here  to  tell,  to  see  if  you 
couldn't  help  me  out.  I  took  the  letter  and.  .  .  .  Well, 
after  a  while  I  began  to  read  it.  It  was  from  a  woman 
in  New  York,  a  woman  I  used  to  know,  to  know  well, 
and  she — she  had  written  it  to  Griggs  because,  so  she 
said,  it  had  just  come  to  her  ears  that  I  was  contem 
plating  marriage  with  his  daughter  and  she  felt  both  the 
young  lady  and  her  father  should  know  me  as  I  *vas,  see 
me  in  my  true  colors,  and  all  that  sort  of  melodramatic 
rot.  She  went  on  to  say  that  I  had.  .  .  .  Well,  what's 
the  use  ?  I  can't  tell  you  all  the  stuff  in  detail.  It  makes 
me  furious  now,  it  made  me  that  and  more  then.  And 
the  consciousness  that  I  was  standing  there,  with  Griggs 
gloating  over  my  confusion  and  Mary  looking  at  me  as 
if — as  if —  Oh,  hang  it,  Captain!  I  threw  the  letter 
down  before  I  had  finished  it." 

"You  did,  eh?" 

"Yes,  I  did.  I  wish  now  I  hadn't,  but  I  did.  And  I 
turned  to  Mary  and  I  asked  her  if  she  believed  it." 

"What  did  she  say?" 

"Nothing  then.  Before  she  could  answer  that  con 
founded  Griggs  asked  me  why  I  hadn't  read  it  through. 
There  was  more  of  it,  he  said,  and  if  it  wasn't  true  why 
was  I  afraid  to  read  it.  He  would  read  it  for  me,  now 
that  he  had  given  me  the  first  chance  and  I  had  refused. 
He  did  read  it,  too.  It  accused  me  of  having  been  en 
gaged  to  marry  this  woman,  of  breaking  off  the  engage 
ment,  of  deserting  her,  of — of  about  every  dishonorable 
thing  you  can  think  of,  or,  if  it  did  not  actually  accuse,  it 

1 86 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

intimated.    The  old  man  read  it  all.    Then  he  turned  to 
me  and  he  said : 

"  'Now,  young  feller,  rs  what  she  says  true  ?' 
"Of  course,  if  I  had  had  time  to  think,  if  I  had  had 
time  to  decide,  I  should  have  answered  him  fully  then. 
But  I  was  so  angry  and  so  anxious  to  relieve  Mary's 
mind,  or  to  relieve  my  mind  concerning  her  attitude,  that 
I  didn't  answer  him  at  all.  Instead,  I  asked  her  again 
if  she  believed  what  the  letter  said." 

"Sho !    I  want  to  know !    What  did  she  say  ?" 

"She  said  of  course  not.     But — but " 

"But  all  the  same  you  could  see  she  sort  of  did.  Well, 
son,  I  ain't  surprised.  Mary  Barstow's  a  mighty  good 
girl  and  a  sensible  one,  'cordin'  to  all  accounts,  but  good 
and  sensible  women  are  like  the  other  kinds  in  one  way : 
they'll  stick  to  a  man  through  thick  and  thin,  they'll 
see  him  accused  of  murder  or  houseburnin'  or  piracy  or 
anything  else,  and  with  all  the  evidence  in  creation 
against  him  they  won't  believe  a  word  of  it,  they'll  hold 
him  innocent  against  the  world.  But  when  there's  an 
other  woman  mixed  up  with  him,  no  matter  if  the  yarn 
of  the  mixin'  is  so  thin  and  slimpsy  that  a  Nauset  marsh 
muskeeter  could  fly  through  it  anywheres  and  not  foul 
a  wing,  then — then,  my  son,  look  out  for  squalls.  I've 
never  had  a  wife,  but  I've  had  an  only  sister.  So  Mary 
said  no  but  looked  yes,  eh?" 

"She  looked  doubtful  and  disturbed,  or  so  it  seemed 
to  me.  Then  Griggs  began  to  cross-question.  He  asked 
if  I  knew  the  woman.  I  was  obliged  to  say  I  did,  of 
course.  Then  he  asked  me  if  I  was  engaged  to  her.  I 
said — I  was  getting  more  angry  every  minute — I  said, 

13  187 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

finally,  yes,  I  was  engaged  to  her  at  one  time.  And  next 
he  asked  if  I  had  told  Mary  that." 

Captain  Noah  interrupted  with  a  whistle  of  involun 
tary  admiration. 

"Whew!"  he  exclaimed.  "That  was  a  shot  in  the 
biler !  I  didn't  know  Balaam  was  so  spry  a  cross-ex 
aminer.  Sounds  almost  as  if  somebody  had  put  him  up 
to  that.  I — er — presume  likely  you  hadn't  told  her?" 

"No,  I  had  not.  Of  course  I  should  have  done  so,  at 
some  time  or  other.  There  was  no  reason  why  I  should 
not.  Look  here,  Captain,"  he  added,  sharply,  as  the 
thought  occurred  to  him,  "of  course  you  thoroughly  un 
derstand  there  was  nothing  I  might  have  told  which  was 
in  any  way  a  reflection  upon  me  in  the  matter.''* 

"Oh,  sartin,  sartin !  Never  thought  for  a  minute  there 
was,  Irve." 

"There  was  not.  I  had  not  told  Mary  simply  because 
I  hadn't,  there  was  no  other  reason.  But  Griggs'  ques 
tion  sounded  as  if — well,  it  put  me  in  the  light  of  delib 
erately  keeping  something  hidden  from  her,  something  I 
was  ashamed  to  tell." 

"I  see,  I  see.  And  of  course  you  realized  that  and 
that  made  you  act  and  look  as  if  you  was  ashamed." 

"Precisely.  And  because  there  was  no  reason  to  be 
ashamed  the  whole  affair  made  me  angrier  than  ever 
with  myself,  with  Griggs,  and  —  yes  —  with  Mary  for 
looking  a  doubt  even  if  she  hadn't  expressed  it  in  words." 

"I  understand.  Well,  how  did  the  whole  business 
end?" 

"It  ended  pretty  so^n  after  that.  Griggs  repeated  his 
question.  I  answered  pretty  sharply  that  I  had  not  told 

188 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

Mary  because  I  hadn't  thought  the  affair  of  sufficient 
consequence." 

"Humph!    And  then ?" 

"Then  Mary  spoke.  'You  have  told  me  so  many  things 
concerning  your  past  life,  Irving,'  she  said.  'Some  that 
seem,  to  me  at  least,  of  no  more  consequence  than  this. 
Why  did  you  keep  this  from  me  ?' 

"I  think  I  should  have  answered  in  a  fairly  temperate 
spirit  if  it  had  not  been  for  Griggs.  He  nodded  his  head 
and  sneered.  'Find  that  a  kind  of  hard  question  to  an 
swer,  I  judge;  eh,  young  feller?'  he  said. 

"Then — then  I  lost  my  temper  completely.  I  told  him 
I  objected  strongly  to  his  tone  and  manner.  I  was  not  a 
criminal  on  trial  and  I  did  not  propose  to  be  treated  like 
one.  I  should  answer  no  more  questions.  He  might 
believe  what  he  chose,  that  made  little  difference  to  me." 

"So?  Well,  that  was — er — plain,  if  not  very  judg 
matical.  And  how  about  Mary?  Say  anything  to  her, 
did  you?" 

"Why,  yes,  I  did.  I  told  her  that  I  thought  she  should 
have  sufficient  confidence  in  me  to  require  no  explana 
tions." 

"Um.  Well,  I  don't  know's  what  I  said  about  your 
remark  to  Balaam  wouldn't  fit  that,  too.  What  did  she 
say?" 

"She  said — she  said  she  had  had  such  confidence.  But 
now  she  could  not  help  wondering.  I  had  kept  one  secret 
from  her.  Were  there  others? 

"I  said  of  course  there  were  no  others. 

'  'But  there  was  this/  she  said.  And  then  her —  No, 
I  won't  call  him  her  father — Griggs  broke  in  again. 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

'And  he  ain't  told  you,  Mary,'  he  said,  'why  he  broke  off 
bein'  engaged  to  this  New  York  woman.  She's  told  us, 
but  he  ain't/ 

"  'Will  you  tell  me,  Irving  ?'  Mary  asked. 

"And  then,  Captain  Newcomb —  Well,  then  I  made  a 
fool  of  myself.  I  realize  it  now,  but  then  all  I  could 
think  was  that,  in  spite  of  my  asking  her  to  trust  me, 
she  was  still  questioning,  she  still  did  not  believe.  I'm 
a,  pig-headed  idiot  at  times ;  I  was  one  then.  I  stiffened, 
I  suppose,  like  a  ridiculous  wooden  Indian,  and  told  her 
I  would  tell  her  nothing  under  compulsion ;  she  must 
take  me  on  trust,  or  words  to  that  effect.  She  looked  at 
me  for  a  minute  without  speaking.  Then  she  said,  'I  am 
sorry,  Irving.  Good-by/  and  left  the  room.  Old  Balaam 
brayed  joyfully,  like  a  modern  edition  of  the  animal  that 
spoke  to  the  Balaam  in  the  Bible,  and  I  hurried  out  for 
fear  I  should  be  tempted  to  knock  him  down,  old  as  he  is. 
That's  the  story;  an  inspiring  thing,  isn't  it?" 

He  relit  his  cigar  and  scowled  vindictively  at  the  car 
pet.  Captain  Noah  nodded  in  sympathy. 

"Tut,  tut,  tut !"  he  said.  "Sho !  so  you  and  she  have 
squabbled  and  parted  company,  eh?  Humph!  Well, 
'tain't  so  bad  but  what  it  can  be  mended,  I  guess  likely. 
There's  always  tomorrow,  you  know." 

"Tomorrow,  and  for  a  good  many  tomorrows,  I  shall 
be  a  thousand  miles  from  here." 

"That's  so,  so  you  will.  That  does  complicate  matters 
some,  don't  it?  Well,  what  did  you  do  after  you  left 
Balaam's?" 

"I  went  back  to  the  storage  plant,  but  I  couldn't  work, 
so  I  went  to  my  room  at  the  Mansion  House.  I've  been 

190 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

there  ever  since — thinking  and  thinking.  And  the  more 
I  think  the  more  puzzled  I  get  and  the  more  angry  at 
myself.  I  can  see  now  that  I  did  the  worst  thing  pos 
sible,  but  now  it  is  too  late." 

"Ye-es.  Well,  son,  I  will  say  this — you  did  swim  into 
the  net  head,  gills  and  back  fin." 

"You  think  it  was  a  trap,  then?" 

"Sartin  sure.  And  pretty  well  set,  too.  Our  dearly 
beloved  Balaam  may  have  been  the  only  hand  that  set  it, 
but  I  have  my  doubts." 

"Who  could  have  helped  him?" 

"Suppose  we  take  that  up  a  little  later.  You  haven't 
told  me  why  you  came  to  me." 

"Because  I  had  to  come  to  some  one,  and  you  are  the 
one,  here  in  Trumet,  whom  I  seem  naturally  to  go  to 
with  my  troubles.  Captain,  I  can't  give  Mary  up.  I 
won't.  If  I  were  to  remain  here  I  should  see  her,  I 
should  make  her  see  me  and  listen  to  me.  But  she 
wouldn't  see  me  now — tonight,  and  Griggs  is  there  to 
prevent  it  as  well.  Tomorrow  I  go  on  the  early  train. 
I  can  write — I  shall,  but  will  she  receive  and  read  my 
letters?  I  don't  know.  Sometimes  I  think  I  will  wire 
the  firm  I  will  not  go  to  Chicago.  Then  I'll  stay  here 
and  fight  it  out.  If  they  discharge  me —  Well,  there 
are  other  firms,  I  suppose." 

"So  there  are,  but  I  wouldn't  give  this  one  its  clear 
ance  papers  just  yet.  Let's  take  an  observation  first, 
anyhow.  Humph !  I  don't  wonder  it  looks  pretty  thick 
ahead  to  you,  son,  but  there  never  was  a  night  so  thick 
but  what  a  feller  could  see  a  light  if  he  got  nigh  enough 
to  it." 

191 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

"Perhaps,  but  I  don't  see  any." 

"Don't  you?  Well,  maybe  I  don't,  either,  but  it  does 
seem  as  if  there  was  a  spark — yes,  sir,  a  glimmer  of  a 
spark.  Whether  it's  a  lighthouse  or  a  lightnin'-bug  re 
mains  to  be  seen.  Son,  long's  you've  told  me  so  much 
would  you  mind  tellin'  me  a  little  more?  Would  you 
mind  tellin'  me  the  whole  story — not  the  Griggs  letter 
one,  but  the  true  one — about  this  New  York  woman  you 
was  engaged  to?  Oh,  'tain't  just  curiosity,  I've  got  my 
reasons  for  askin'.  I'm  kind  of  hopin'  it'll  fetch  us  a 
little  nigher  that  light  I  think  I  sight  in  the  offin'." 

Clifford  waited  some  time  before  replying.  It  was 
very  evident  he  did  not  relish  the  idea  of  telling  the  story. 
At  last,  however,  he  seemed  to  make  up  his  mind. 

"Oh,  all  right,  Captain,"  he  said,  "I'll  tell  it.  It's  un 
pleasant  but  not  disgraceful — to  me,  at  least.  And,  as 
you  say,  I've  told  so  much  that  a  little  more  won't  hurt. 
I  knew  this  woman  when  I  was  a  young  fellow  just 
out  of  college.  I  was  in  New  York  then  and  I  met  her 
at  a  concert  given  by  some  acquaintances  of  mine.  Her 
name  was  Emmons,  Madeline  Emmons,  and  she  was  a 
widow  about  five  years  older  than  I.  Her  husband  had 
been  in  the  navy,  I  believe." 

"You  believe?    Don't  you  know?" 

"I  believed  it  then,  because  she  said  so.  I  would  have 
believed  anything  then.  He  was  a  naval  officer,  so  she 
said,  and  died  abroad.  She  lived  in  a  pleasant  apartment 
uptown  and  seemed  to  have  many  friends.  I  got  in  the 
habit  of  calling  there.  We  became  more  intimate  and, 
later  on,  we  were  engaged.  That's  about  all,  isn't  it?" 

192 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

Captain  Noah's  eyes  twinkled.  "Yes,"  he  said,  "that's 
about  all,  except  the  way  you  got  disengaged." 

His  friend  frowned. 

"It  was  a  miserable  business,"  he  said.  "I  hate  to 
speak  of  it  because  it  makes  me  appear  so  like  a  simple 
idiot.  I  was  just  that,  a  simple,  innocent  young  cub,  and 
she —  Oh,  she  used  me  and  made  a  fool  of  me,  that's 
all.  I  found  out,  after  a  while,  that  she  had  been  play 
ing  with  me,  that  she  never  had  really  cared  two  straws 
for  me,  that  I  had  money  to  spend  and  lend  and  she 
needed  money  and  so —  Oh,  it's  plain  enough,  isn't  it?" 

"Does  seem  to  be,  that's  a  fact.  So  you  give  her  the 
go-by,  eh?" 

"Yes.  If  it  had  been  the  money  alone  I  shouldn't  have 
cared.  It  left  me  head  over  heels  in  debt,  but  that  was 
nothing.  I  found  out  other  things,  things  about  other 
men  that —  Well,  that's  all.  I  don't  care  to  say  any 
more.  Just  forget  it,  will  you,  Captain?" 

"Sartin,  sartin.  But  afore  we  forget  it  altogether,  son, 
seems  as  if  we'd  ought  to  clear  the  fog  a  little  mite,  if 
we  can.  You  and  she  quarreled,  of  course  ?  She  didn't 
bear  you  any  good-will,  naturally  ?" 

"No." 

"No.  And  she'd  be  rather  glad  to  do  you  a  bad  turn, 
if  she  could?" 

"I  suppose  so.  Considering  what  she  has  done  we 
might  take  that  for  granted,  I  should  say." 

"Um-hm.  But  how  did  she  know  how  to  get  at  you 
to  do  it  ?  You  never  told  her  you  were  comin'  to  Trumet 
to  work?" 

193 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

"No,  certainly  not.  I  have  neither  seen  her  nor  writ 
ten  her  for  six  years  at  least." 

"So?  But  her  letter  was  addressed  to  Balaam  and  she 
knew  all  about  you  and  Mary.  Humph!  There's  been 
a  mutual  friend  at  work  somewheres,  that's  sure.  Can't 
guess  who  'tis,  can  you,  son?" 

The  young  man's  fists  clenched.  "I  cannot,"  he 
affirmed.  "If  I  could,  that  'friend'  and  I  would  have  an 
interview." 

"That  so  ?  Well,  Irve,  here's  another  thing :  When  we 
was  talkin'  'tother  day  you  told  me  you  first  had  the 
honor  of  makin'  Cousin  Calvin  Wentworth's  acquaintance 
at  the  home  of  a  friend,  in  New  York.  That  friend 
didn't  happen  to  be  this  Emmons  lady,  did  it?" 

He  received  no  reply  in  words,  but  he  needed  none. 
The  expression  upon  Irving  Clifford's  face  was  suffi 
cient.  Captain  Noah  burst  into  a  laugh. 

"Irve,"  he  said,  "that  spark  of  light  I  thought  I  sighted 
a  spell  ago  is  gettin'  brighter  every  minute,  ain't  it  ?  We'll 
begin  to  see  how  to  steer  pretty  soon,  I  cal'late." 

His  companion  rose  to  his  feet.  "Wentworth !"  he 
exclaimed.  "Wentworth!  He  would  know,  of  course. 
If  I  thought  he  did —  But  why  should  he?" 

The  captain  shook  his  head.  "Why,  that's  the  sticker, 
I  give  in,"  he  admitted.  "Nine  and  three-quarters 
chances  out  of  a  scant  ten  he's  the  swab  that  put  Balaam 
up  to  this.  But  why  should  he?  that's  the  question. 
Here !  WThere  are  you  goin'  ?" 

Clifford  was  on  the  way  to  the  door.  "I'm  going  to 
see  him  and  find  out,"  he  said,  with  savage  determination. 

"No,  no!  Here,  heave  to,  Irve!  Don't  be  foolish. 

194 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

Can't  you  see  that's  just  the  way  not  to  find  out?  All 
he'll  do  is  deny  everything  and  make  you  look  like  a 
fool.  You  can't  prove  anything  on  him  now.  Wait 
until  you  can.  That's  it;  you  think  it  over.  Here!  set 
down  again.  You  can  think  better  that  way." 

The  young  man  reluctantly  sat  down  in  the  chair  he 
had  just  vacated.  It  was  quite  evident  that  postponing 
the  interview  with  Wentworth  appealed  more  to  his 
judgment  than  his  inclination. 

"The  blackguard!"  he  exclaimed.  "If  I  were  only 
sure !  But  I  can't  believe  it.  He's  been  friendly  enough 
down  here.  Why  should  he  do  such  a  thing  ?" 

"That's  it,  why  should  he  ?  Well,  let's  see.  How  was 
it  in  New  York;  were  you  good  chums  there?" 

"We  weren't  chums  at  all.  I  knew  him,  but  very 
slightly." 

"He  wasn't  one  of  the  fellers  you  hinted  at  in  connec 
tion  with  your  ex-lady  friend?" 

"No-o,  no.  That  is,  he  appeared  to  know  her  well, 
but " 

"All  right.  I  only  meant  there  was  no  reason  why  he 
should  be  jealous  of  you  or  anything  like  that?" 

"No." 

"No.  And  you  and  he  never  had  any  row,  or  quarrel 
or  fuss  or  anything?" 

"No.  We  disagreed  once  or  twice,  and  once  I  de 
clined  to  second  the  proposal  of  the  name  of  a  friend  of 
his  for  club  membership.  I  was  frank  enough  about  it, 
told  him  I  didn't  know  the  chap  well  enough  to  second 
him.  As  a  matter  of  fact,  Captain,  I  didn't  like  Went- 

195 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

worth  or  his  set  very  well,  although  I  tried  not  to  show 
my  feelings." 

"Humph!  Yes,  yes,  I  see.  Maybe  you  didn't  try 
quite  hard  enough,  son.  However,  even  if  he  don?t  love 
you  like  a  brother,  his  comin'  to  call  on  you  a  dozen 
times  or  so  down  at  the  cold-storage  proves  he  don't 
hate  you.  If  he's  responsible  for  sickin'  the  Emmons 
woman  onto  you — and  I'll  bet  he  is — there  must  be  some 
better  reason  than  just  a  halfway  grudge.  Of  course, 
there's  Mary.  If  we  thought  he  would  like  to  get  her  for 
himself,  why  then —  But  he  don't." 

"Of  course  he  doesn't.    Why,  he  scarcely  knows  her." 

"That  ain't  the  reason.  Once  get  you  out  of  the  way 
and  he  could  get  to  know  her  quick  enough,  especially 
if  he  stands  in  with  Balaam.  But,  unless  I'm  way,  way 
off  in  my  reckoning  Cousin  Calvin  won't  ever  marry 
unless  he  can  feather  his  nest.  If  Mary  had  money  then 
I  should  say  we  had  the  answer,  but  she  ain't,  has  she  ?" 

"No.  She  told  me  once  that  she  was  dependent  upon 
her  stepfather,  while  she  lived  here  at  least.  But  Went- 
worth  doesn't  need  money ;  he's  wealthy." 

"Is  he?" 

"Everyone  says  he  is." 

"Yes,  I  know,  but —  However,  there's  no  use  guessin' 
when  waitin'  will  give  us  a  sartinty.  I  expect  a  letter 
most  any  day  that  will  settle  Cousin  Calvin's  ratin'.  But 
this  I'll  stand  pat  on :  He  ain't  the  kind  to  marry  for  love, 
and  if  Mary  Barstow  won't  bring  him  any  money  then 
it  ain't  her  he's  after.  So  why  does  he  help  Balaam  get 
rid  of  you?" 

"I  give  it  up.    I  don't  believe  he  is  doing  it." 

196 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

"Don't  you?  I  do.  For  one  thing,  he  and  Balaam 
have  been  pretty  thick  lately.  I've  noticed  it,  and  so  has 
Obadiah.  I  cal'late  Calvin's  in  it,  Irve,  but  why  I  own 
up  I  can't  see.  And  I  can't  for  the  life  of  me  see  why 
Griggs  don't  want  his  stepdaughter  to  get  married.  Find 
that  out  and  we  might  find  out  all  the  rest.  And  we  will 
find  it  out;  we  will.  It  may  take  time,  but " 

"But  in  the  meantime  I  go  to  Chicago  to  stay  for 
months." 

"Eh?  So  you  do,  so  you  do.  That  does  make  it 
harder,  as  the  boy  said  when  he  made  up  a  riddle  and 
put  in  a  lot  of  extra  questions  that  had  nothin'  to  do 
with  it.  But,  Irve,  I'm  goin'  to  stay  by  the  ship,  you 
know,  and  if  you  want  to  let  me  play  stevedore,  why — 
why  I'll  do  my  best  to  look  after  your  property  and  I'll 
undertake  to  say  that  nobody — Wentworth  or  anybody 
else — runs  off  with  it.  That  ain't  much  comfort  to  you, 
maybe,  but  it's  about  all  I  can  say  just  now." 

Clifford  seemed  to  find  a  little  cheer  in  it.  He  thanked 
his  friend  cordially.  Then,  with  an  obvious  effort,  he 
attempted  to  change  the  subject. 

"Captain,"  he  said,  "when  I  first  came  in  here  you 
said  you  had  something  to  tell  me,  something  about  your 
puzzles,  I  think  it  was.  I've  been  filling  you  full  of  my 
worries  and  haven't  shown  the  slightest  interest  in  yours. 
But  I  am  interested,  I  am  really.  What  was  it  you  had 
to  tell  me?" 

Noah  smiled.  "Why,  nothin',  Irve,"  he  said.  "That 
is,  nothin'  except  that  I've  fitted  in  one  little  piece  in 
one  of  my  picture  puzzles,  that's  all.  I  ain't  at  liberty 

197 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

to  tell  you  what  'tis ;  all  I  can  say  is  that  it  fits.  By  and 
by  I'll  tell  you  more." 

His  visitor  said  good  night  shortly  after  this.  His 
tone,  as  he  said  it,  was  anything  but  hopeful.  The  cap 
tain  laid  a  hand  on  his  shoulder. 

"Brace  up,  son,"  he  counseled.  "Mary's  a  good  girl, 
a  sensible  girl.  She's  a  little  mite  put  out  with  you  now, 
but  when  she  comes  to  think  it  over  she'll  feel  different. 
You  write  her  a  good,  straight,  honest  letter,  tell  her 
the  whole  truth  and  nothin'  but  the  truth.  Then  you'll 
see." 

Irving  still  looked  dubious. 

"I  doubt  if  she  ever  gets  my  letters,"  he  said.  "I 
imagine  old  Griggs  will  see  that  she  doesn't." 

"He  will,  eh?  Well,  you  put  'em  inside  another  en 
velope  and  address  that  envelope  to  me.  Then  I'll  see 
that  she  does.  And  I'll  see  you  tomorrow  mornin'  before 
you  start  for  the  train.  Maybe  I'll —  Why,  yes,  I  will: 
I'll  take  you  up  to  the  depot  in  my  'Pancake/  We'll 
both  have  slept  on  our  troubles  by  that  time  and  they 
may  not  seem  so  hard.  Good  night,  son.  Much  obliged 
to  you  for  comin'  and  tellin'  me  about  it." 

After  his  visitor  had  gone  Captain  Noah  sat  down 
once  more  beside  the  table.  He  took  up  the  letter  to 
his  New  York  cousin,  that  which  he  had  been  writing 
when  Irving's  coming  interrupted  him.  He  read  what 
he  had  written,  reflected,  then  tore  the  letter  up  and 
began  a  fresh  one.  This  one  was  long.  It  ended  as 
follows : 

And  so  here  is  what  I  want  you  to  find  out  for  me 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

Number  one — Find  out  all  you  can  about  Ostrich  Mining 
and  Smelting  Company. 

Number  two — Find  out  all  you  can  about  Calvin  Went- 
worth,  who  used  to  belong  to  the  New  Amsterdam  Club. 
I  wrote  asking  about  him  once  before  and  I  did  not  get 
a  peep  out  of  you.  If  you  don't  hurry  up  and  answer  I  will 
transfer  my  business  to  another  broker  next  time  I  invest 
a  couple  of  hundred  dollars.  I  hate  to  be  cruel  as  all  that 
but  I  have  got  to  get  a  letter  out  of  you  somehow. 

Number  three — Find  out  all  you  can  about  a  widow 
woman  name  of  Madeline  Emmons.  She  was  a  friend  of 
this  Wentworth  fellow's  and  lived 

Here  the  captain  paused,  remembering  that  he  had  not 
asked  Clifford  where  Mrs.  Emmons  lived  when  he  knew 
her.  He  decided  to  wait,  get  this  information  from  the 
young  man  when  he  took  him  to  the  station  in  the  morn 
ing,  and  finish  his  letter  afterward. 

He  blew  out  the  lamp,  moved  his  chair  over  beside 
the  open  window,  and  sat  there  looking  out.  It  was  a 
fine  starlit  night,  and  there  was  little  wind.  The  lights 
in  the  houses  across  the  bay  were  for  the  most  part  ex 
tinguished,  but  the  distant  lighthouse  was  a  fiery  spark, 
and  on  the  horizon  a  pinprick  of  fire  marked  the  posi 
tion  of  a  tug  or  schooner. 

Captain  Noah  leaned  back  in  his  chair,  crossed  his 
knees  and  meditated  upon  his  curious  position  there  in 
Trumet.  If  anyone  had  told  him,  two  years  before,  that 
he  was  destined  to  spend  so  much  time  and  mental  energy 
trying  to  solve  the  difficulties  of  people  not  related  to  him 
in  any  way,  he  would  have  laughed  at  the  idea.  And  now 
here  he  was,  neck  deep  in  those  difficulties,  like  old 

199 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

Jotham  Hallett  in  the  cistern.  And,  as  if  Obadiah's 
troubles  were  not  sufficient,  here  was  young  Clifford  in 
a  tangle,  which  he,  Noah,  had  undertaken  to  straighten. 

At  the  Clifford  tangle,  however,  he  was  inclined  to 
smile.  A  lover's  quarrel,  with  Balaam  and  Wentworth 
as  its  fomentors,  so  he  appraised  the  affair.  But  the  sit 
uation  would  require  tact  and  careful  handling.  As  for 
Obadiah's  investment  in  copper  stock,  that  was  likely  to 
be  more  serious.  Poor  Obadiah!  his  Aunt  Sarah's  leg 
acy  had  not  been  an  unmixed  blessing.  One  fact  was 
shaping  itself  clearer  and  clearer  with  each  new  develop 
ment,  that  was  that  Mr.  Balaam  Griggs  was  a  good  deal 
of  a  scoundrel  as  well  as  a  sharp  trader.  Curious  that 
a  woman  like  Melissa  Mayo  should  be  helping  him  in 
his  schemes.  No,  of  course  she  was  not  helping  him, 
for  she  had  more  than  hinted  her  disapproval  of  those 
schemes.  But  why  was  she  mixed  up  in  them,  or  why 
did  she  remain  as  housekeeper  when —  Oh,  hang  the 
"picture  puzzles" !  they  were  altogether  too  disturbing 
to  the  mind.  And,  after  Clifford  had  gone,  there  would 
be  no  one  to  confide  in,  no  one  to  help  discuss  or  con 
jecture.  For  the  first  time  since  he  came  to  Trumet 
Captain  Noah  felt  lonely. 

A  window  in  the  ell  opposite  his  own  lit  up.  It  was 
the  housekeeper's  room.  A  moment  later  the  window 
shade  was  raised  and  the  captain  saw  Mrs.  Mayo  stand 
ing  by  the  window,  looking  out.  He  was  in  the  dark,  of 
course,  so  she  did  not  see  him,  but  the  light  from  the 
lamp  which  she  held  in  her  hand  shone  full  upon  her 
'face.  It  was  a  kind  face,  a  wholesome,  comely  face. 
ITo  a  woman  with  a  face  like  that  one  might — or  ought — 

200 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

to  turn  for  counsel,  for  help,  for  comradeship,  for  stead 
fast,  cheerful  courage  through  the  shadows  as  well  as 
the  sunshine.  If  things  were  other  than  as  they  were, 
if  she  were  not  a  part  of  the  mystery  he  was  trying  to 
solve,  how  natural  it  would  seem  to  go  to  her  for  advice 
in  the  solving.  But  she  was  a  part  of  it.  And,  so  far  at 
least,  it  was  such  a  mean,  mercenary  mystery.  A  group 
of  people  conspiring  to  cheat  an  innocent,  guileless  fel 
low-mortal  out  of  his  few  dollars. 

Captain  Noah,  leaning  back  in  the  dark  behind  his 
open  window,  gazed  across  at  Melissa  Mayo's  face  in 
the  lamplight  and  once  more  vowed,  mentally,  his  belief 
in  her  honesty.  She  was  honest,  she  was  true  and  square 
and  above  board.  He  would  stake  his  last  cent  on  it 
But  she  was  in  trouble,  deep  trouble.  She  looked  sad 
and  careworn.  Again  the  captain  felt  that  strong  desire 
to  help  her,  to  comfort  her,  to 

Just  here  Mrs.  Mayo  pulled  down  her  window-shade. 
Captain  Noah  suddenly  came  out  of  his  reverie,  rose,  lit 
his  own  lamp,  pulled  down  his  window-curtain  and  pre 
pared  for  bed. 

It  was  high  time,  he  decided.  Sitting  in  the  dark 
made  one  think  foolish  things.  He  was  past  fifty  and 
at  that  age  a  man's  thoughts  should  be  sane  and  his  head 
hard.  If  the  thoughts  were  foolish  and  ridiculous  it 
was,  probably,  a  sign  that  the  head  was  in  danger  of 
softening  and  needed  the  restorative  of  rest. 

So  Captain  Noah  went  to  bed. 


CHAPTER   XIV 

NEXT  morning,  true  to  his  promise,  he  called  in 
the  little  motor  car  to  take  Irving  to  the  railway 
station.  Not  to  the  Trumet  station ;  that,  the  cap 
tain  declared,  was  "too  nigh  a  port."  He  had  turned  out 
early,  he  said,  in  order  to  have  time  enough  for  a  good 
talk  with  his  friend  before  the  latter  boarded  the  train, 
and  as  that  train  might  be  boarded  just  as  well  at  Bay- 
port  as  Trumet,  and  as  Bayport  was  a  ten-mile  ride,  to 
Bayport  they  went. 

During  the  run  over,  the  Griggs-Barstow-Wentworth 
situation  was  thoroughly  rediscussed.  The  captain  was 
just  as  certain  as  he  had  been  the  previous  evening  that 
Cousin  Calvin  was  responsible  for  the  Emmons  woman's 
letter  to  Balaam.  Clifford  was  inclined  to  agree  with 
him,  but  was  not  so  sure.  The  reason  why  Wentworth 
was  helping  Griggs  in  the  latter's  schemes,  if  helping  he 
was,  was  still  a  mystery. 

"I've  guessed  till  I've  strained  a  plank  in  my  guesser," 
declared  Noah,  "but  the  right  answer  is  always  round 
the  next  p'int  and  out  of  sight  when  I  get  there.  And 
then  there's  the  other  question :  Why  don't  Balaam  want 
Mary  to  marry?  Well,  maybe  when  we  get  one  answer 

202 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

we'll  get  the  other.  They  may  be  strung  on  together,  like 
herrin's  on  a  stick.  Anyhow,  son,  I'll  keep  my  weather 
eye  on  Cousin  Calvin  and  the  antiquer.  Don't  you  worry 
about  that." 

Irving  did  his  best  to  appear  cheerful  as  they  stood  on 
the  station  platform  waiting  for  the  train,  but  his  best  was 
not  a  huge  success.  Their  interview  was  interrupted  by 
an  acquaintance  of  Clifford's,  a  Mr.  Philander  Badger. 
Mr.  Badger  was  a  lawyer,  with  an  office  in  Ostable,  but 
he  occasionally  visited  Trumet  on  professional  business. 
While  in  the  latter  village  he  was  accustomed  to  make  his 
headquarters  at  the  Mansion  House,  and  it  was  there  that 
Irving  had  met  him. 

He  was  not  especially  delighted  to  meet  him  now,  but 
Badger,  quite  unaware  of  this,  chatted,  laughed,  was  in 
troduced  to  Captain  Noah,  and  generally  gave  evidence 
of  a  determination  not  to  go  elsewhere  for  the  present  at 
least.  He  had  come  down  to  Bayport  the  day  before  and 
was  awaiting  the  arrival  of  the  "down"  train. 

"Got  to  go  over  to  Harniss,"  he  explained.  "A  half 
hour's  business  over  there  and  I  have  to  wait  an  hour  and 
a  half  for  a  train  to  put  me  where  I  can  do  it.  My  auto's 
in  the  repair  shop  or  I  shouldn't  be  marking  time  on  this 
depot  platform.  However,  what  can't  be  cured  must  be 
endured ;  so  why  worry  ?  Isn't  that  good  logic,  Cap'n 
Newcomb  ?" 

"Sartin  is,"  observed  Noah.  "Only  it's  a  pretty  good 
idea  to  make  sure  there's  no  cure  in  sight  afore  you  start 
the  endurin'.  Now  in  your  case,  Mr.  Badger,  I've  got  a 
prescription.  My  car's  right  out  yonder,  and  soon's  I've 
put  this  young  feller  aboard  the  train,  I'm  goin'  to  head 

14  203 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

for  Trumet.  I  can  go  by  way  of  Harniss  just  as  well 
as  not,  and  if  you  want  to —  Eh  ?  Who  said  the  days  of 
miracles  was  past?  Here's  the  up  train  a-comin'  and 
she's  on  time!" 

He  accompanied  his  friend  to  a  seat  in  the  car,  shook 
hands  with  him  once  more  and  then  stooped  and  whis 
pered  in  his  ear. 

"Irve,"  he  whispered,  "send  those  letters  right  along, 
those  you  and  me  spoke  about  last  night.  I'll  see  she  gets 
'em,  every  last  one.  And  don't  you  fret  yourself  a  single 
mite,  son;  everything's  goin'  to  come  out  fine." 

Clifford  smiled  dubiously.  "I  wish  I  had  more  of  your 
optimism,"  he  said.  "However,  I  won't  give  up  hope." 

"You  bet  you  won't !  Neither  will  I.  We  may  get  those 
two  schemers'  fingers  squeezed  in  the  jaws  of  the  jib  yet. 
And  if  we  do  we  won't  slack  up  the  tackle  in  a  hurry, 
neither.  Now  you  write  me,  won't  you  ?  I  know  you'll 
write  other  places,  but —  Eh?  Oh,  all  right,  conductor, 
I'm  a-comin'.  So  long,  Irve.  Fair  wind,  safe  passage  and 
a  quick  v'yage  home  again.  Good-by." 

He  stood  on  the  platform  watching  the  train  until  it 
was  out  of  sight.  Badger  touched  him  on  the  shoulder. 
He  started  and  turned. 

"Oh!"  he  exclaimed.  "Land  sakes,  Mr.  Badger,  I  for 
got  all  about  you." 

The  lawyer  grinned.  "So  I  thought,"  he  said,  "but  I 
hadn't  forgotten  about  you.  Anyone  who  offers  to  save 
me  an  hour's  wait  in  this  fag-end  of  creation  and  give  me 
an  automobile  ride  besides  on  a  morning  like  this  is  too 
precious  to  be  forgotten.  Hope  you  haven't  repented  of 
your  bargain,  Cap'n." 

204 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

"Nary  a  bit.  Ready,  are  you?  That  little  satchel  all 
the  dunnage  you  got?  Sho!  you  travel  pretty  nigh  as 
light  as  old  Barney  Gould  used  to,  eh?  Folks  down  this 
way  when  I  was  a  boy,  visitin',  used  to  say  that  the  only 
change  Barney  made  was  to  put  on  a  heavier  coat  of  sun 
burn  in  the  summer.  Here's  my  nine-cylinder  dust-dis 
turber.  All  aboard." 

There  was  a  good  deal  of  conversation  on  the  way  to 
Harniss,  but  only  just  as  the  car  was  entering  that  village 
did  Mr.  Badger  make  a  .emark  which  particularly  im 
pressed  his  pilot.  The  talk  immediately  leading  up  to  this 
remark  was  as  follows : 

"I  can't  tell  you  how  much  obliged  I  am  to  you  for  this 
lift,  Cap'n  Newcomb,"  said  the  lawyer.  "Now  the  next 
time  you  come  to  Ostable  you  call  and  see  me,  will  you? 
I  want  you  to  meet  Mrs.  Badger  and  have  dinner  with 
us." 

The  captain  thanked  him,  but  observed  that  he  was 
afraid  he  should  not  get  to  Ostable  very  soon;  it  was  a 
good  way  from  Trumet. 

"Oh,  not  so  far !  People  with  cars  don't  count  twenty- 
odd  miles  nowadays.  Why,  a  couple  of  your  Trumet 
neighbors  were  over  there  in  a  car  only  a  fortnight  ago. 
Mr.  Griggs — Balaam  Griggs — was  one.  Know  him,  do 
you?" 

Noah  nodded.    "Um-hm,"  he  said.    "I  know  him." 

Badger  chuckled  at  the  tone.  "I  judge  you  know  him 
well,"  he  said.  "He  was  over  at  Judge  Baxter's  fore 
closing  a  mortgage.  The  Judge  told  me  that  if  Griggs  had 
a  mortgage  on  an  island  in  the  brimstone  lake  at  the  bot 
tom  of  perdition,  he  believed  the  old  fellow  would  put  on 

205 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

asbestos  gloves  and  try  to  collect  the  interest.  The  Judge 
doesn't  often  talk  that  way  about  his  clients,  but  I  imagine 
he  would  shed  mighty  few  tears  if  Griggs  hired  another 
lawyer." 

Captain  Noah  laughed.  His  companion  laughed  also, 
and  continued. 

"Who  was  the  chap  he  had  with  him,  I  wonder?"  he 
asked.  "Do  you  know  him,  Cap'n?  A  slim,  citified  fel 
low  with  a  little  black  mustache  and  a  sort  of  smooth, 
smart- Aleck  way.  A  good  de-1  of  a  dude.  I  saw  him 
getting  out  of  the  car  he  and  Griggs  came  over  in,  and 
if  he  and  Balaam  weren't  a  contrast  then  I  never  saw 
one." 

The  captain  nodded.  "That,"  he  observed,  gravely, 
"was  the  Honorable  Calvin  Wentwortb  of  New  York 
City.  Balaam  likes  to  ride  in  automobiles  when  he  can 
get  somebody  to  drive  'em  free  and  he's  usin'  somebody 
else's  gas  and  ile.  Cousin — I  mean  the  Honorable  Cal 
vin — he  likes  the  fun  of  drivin'  'em,  I  cal'late.  That's 
how  the  combination  hitched  up  together,  I  believe.  Some 
color  scheme,  though,  them  two,  eh?  Match  up  like  a 
pogy  scow  and  a  steam  yacht." 

The  lawyer  seemed  to  find  the  comparison  amusing. 
"Ha,  ha!  that's  good,  Cap'n,"  he  said.  "So  our  citified 
friend  is  from  New  York.  Humph!  then  young  Baker 
at  the  Probate  office  must  have*  made  a  mistake.  He 
said  the  fellow  came  from  the  West  somewhere  and  was 
looking  up  his  family  records,  old  wills  and  that  sort  of 
thing." 

This  was  the  remark  before  referred  to,  that  which 
made  a  particular  impression  upon  the  captain's  mind. 

206 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

For  a  moment  he  made  no  answer  at  all.    Then  he  said: 

"What  was  that,  Mr.  Badger?  You  say  Wentworth 
give  out  that  he  was  from  the  West  and  was  down  to  the 
Clerk  of  Probates'  lookin'  up  old  wills?" 

"So  young  Baker  told  me.  He  said  this  man —  It  cer 
tainly  was  the  one  you  call  Wentworth,  that  is,  if  Went 
worth  came  in  the  car  with  Griggs  that  day." 

"He  did.  I  know  it  for  a  fact.  And  Balaam  himself 
told  somebody  afterwards  that  Calvin  had  drove  him  to 
Ostable  in  Ziby  Rogers'  auto — Balaam  borrowed  it  off 
Zibe — and  that  he'd  never  seen  such  hair-raisin'  drivin' 
in  his  life." 

"Yes,  well,  Baker  told  me  that  this  swell  Western  man 
came  in  to  the  Probate  office  while  he  was  there  alone 
and  gave  him  a  good  cigar  and  then  spent  fifteen  or 
twenty  minutes  looking  over  old  wills,  wills  of  people 
who  had  lived  in  Wapatomac,  I  believe.  He  was  tracing 
familv  records,  he  gave  Baker  to  understand.  But  I  told 
you  that,  didn't  I  ?" 

"Um — yes — yes,  I  believe  you  did.  Lookin'  up  wills  of 
Wapatomac  folks,  eh?  Um — yes,  yes.  You  don't  hap 
pen  to  remember  whether  the  Baker  chap  said  whose 
wills,  do  you?" 

"Yes,  I  think  he  did  say.  I  think  he  said — let  me  see — 
Why,  yes,  he  said  they  were  the  wills  of  some  of  the  Bar- 
stows  who  used  to  live  over  that  way.  Ira  Barstow  and 
his  wife  and  that  lot.  ...  Eh?  Did  you  speak,  Cap'n?" 

If  Captain  Noah  had  spoken  he  did  not  speak  again. 
In  fact,  for  the  last  five  minutes  of  their  ride  together 
he  was  remarkably  quiet.  Only  when  the  car  drew  up 
before  the  door  of  the  Harniss  residence,  which  was  Mr. 

207 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

Badger's  destination,  did  he  offer  more  than  a  mono 
syllabic  grunt.  Then,  in  answer  to  his  passenger's 
thanks  and  repeated  invitation  to  call  upon  him  at  Osta- 
ble,  he  said : 

"Well — well,  you  can't  tell,  Mr.  Badger,  I  may  get  over 
there  sooner  than  I  expected.  When  I  do  I'd  kind  of 
like  to  go  down  to  that  Probate  office  and  have  you  intro 
duce  me  to  that  Baker  feller.  Had  you  just  as  soon? 
Thanks,  thanks.  Don't  say  a  word.  Pleasure's  been  all 
mine.  Mighty  glad  to  have  had  your  company.  So 
long." 

All  the  way  home  he  sat  at  the  wheel  of  the  little  car 
preoccupied  and  thoughtful.  When  he  ran  the  car  into 
the  Burgess  barn  there  was  a  twinkk  in  his  eye  and  a 
smile  at  the  corner  of  his  lip.  He  looked  more  confident 
and  satisfied  with  himself  than  he  had  for  some  time. 

Two  days  later  he  received  a  reply  to  the  letter  he  had 
written  his  New  York  cousin.  The  broker  wrote  that 
he  was  having  an  investigation  made  of  the  Ostrich  Min 
ing  Company  and  its  affairs  and  would  send  those  par 
ticulars  a  little  later.  But  in  the  present  letter  he  gave 
some  other  information  which  Captain  Noah  seemed  to 
find  interesting  and  satisfying.  The  day  after  receiving 
this  letter  he  left  the  house  in  his  car  soon  after  break 
fast  and  remained  away  until  supper  time.  The  follow 
ing  day  he  was  gone  quite  as  long.  When  Obadiah,  the 
ever  curious,  asked  him  where  he  had  been,  he  said : 

"Been?  I  been  out  takin*  the  air,  Obe.  Been  soakin' 
in  the  ozone.  Cruisin'  round  through  the  scenery  and 
doin'  picture  puzzles.  You'd  ought  to  try  it  some  time, 

208 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

Obe ;  strengthens  the  lungs,  lights,  liver  and  appetite,  like 
old  Doctor  So-and-So's  Spring  Bitters." 

Obadiah  grunted.  "How  you  do  talk,  Cap'n  Noah," 
he  said.  "Doin'  picture  puzzles  ridin'  round  in  a  a-a-au- 
automobile !" 

"Sure  thing.  Best  way  to  do  'em  in  the  world;  any 
how  I  seem  to  get  better  results  that  way.  Obe,  have  a 
cigar,  won't  you?  By  the  way,  seems  to  me  I  ain't  seen 
you  burnin'  up  so  many  'Liberty  Maids'  lately." 

Mr.  Burgess  groaned.  "I  can't  afford  'em,"  he  said. 
"Them  nor  no  other  kinds.  I'm  on  my  way  to  the  poor- 
house,  I  cal'late,  and  p-p-pup-paupers  don't  smoke 
cigars." 

Noah  clapped  him  on  the  back.  "Cheer  up,  Obe,"  he 
said.  Then,  as  a  hen  cackled  loudly  behind  the  barn,  he 
added:  "Hark!  there's  one  of  your  Shanghai  ostriches 
laid  an  egg ;  maybe  that  other  Ostrich  of  yours'll  lay  one, 
too,  some  of  these  days.  Hello!  I  just  noticed  how 
dressed  up  you  are.  Ain't  goin'  to  be  married  tonight, 
are  you?" 

Obadiah's  expression  of  discouragement  was  succeeded 
by  one  of  disgust. 

"Married!"  he  repeated.  "Married!  What  do  you 
think  I  be,  a  d-d-d-dud " 

"Don't  say  it,  Obe.  There's  no  fun  in  swearin'  when 
it  takes  as  long  as  that." 

"Swearin'!  I  wan't  cal'latin'  to  swear.  I  was  askin' 
you  if  you  took  me  for  a  d-d-dud-dud-dumbhead.  There ; 
I  got  it  out  finally.  I've  got  my  Sunday  clothes  on  'cause 
me  and  Balaam  are  goin'  down  to  lodge  meetin'  tonight. 
Coin*  to  put  a  couple  of  new  candidates  through,  they 

209 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

be.  It'll  be  a  lively  doin's,  I  cal'late,  'cause  one  of  em's 
Ezra  Paine  and  he  ain't  very  p-p-pop-pop'lar,  Ez  ain't." 

Captain  Noah  reflected  "Humph !"  he  grunted  "So 
Balaam's  goin'  with  you,  is  he?  Sure  of  that?" 

"Sartin.    He's  goin'  to  call  for  me  on  his  way  along." 

"How  long'll  you  be  puttin'  those  poor  victims  through, 
think?" 

"Couple  of  hours,  anyhow;  more  likely  three." 

"I  see.    Well,  Obe,  I  hope  you  enjoy  their  sufferin's." 

Obadiah  nodded  with  gloomy  satisfaction.  "I'm  cal'- 
latin'  to,"  he  affirmed.  "A  feller's  bound  to  get  a  little 
comfort  out  of  life." 

Mr.  Griggs  called  for  him  just  before  eight  o'clock 
and  they  walked  away  together.  Captain  Noah  watched 
them  go.  Then  he,  too,  left  the  Burgess  premises,  al 
though  his  walk  was  in  the  opposite  direction.  It  was  a 
short  walk,  merely  to  the  Griggs  front  gate  and  along 
the  path  to  the  side  door.  Upon  that  door  he  knocked 
and  Mary  Barstow  opened  it. 

The  young  lady  looked,  so  it  seemed  to  the  captain, 
rather  pale  and  careworn.  However,  she  smiled  when 
she  recognized  the  bulky  figure  on  the  stone  step. 

"Why,  good  evening,  Captain  Newcomb,"  she  said. 
"I'm  awfully  sorry,  but  Mr.  Griggs  isn't  in.  He  has  gone 
to  the  meeting  of  the  lodge,  I  believe." 

Noah  nodded,  cheerfully.  "There's  one  p'int  where 
I've  got  the  advantage  of  you,  Mary,"  he  observed.  "You 
only  believe  he's  gone  and  I  know  it.  I  saw  him  go.  Fact 
is,  I  was  waitin'  for  him  to  go  afore  I  came  around  to 
see  you.  Thank  you,  I  guess  likely  I  will  come  in,  seein' 
as  you're  so  pressin'." 

210 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

Mary  laughed.  She  and  the  captain  had  become  pretty 
well  acquainted  during  the  month  just  past  and  she  was 
getting  used  to  his  eccentricities. 

"I  don't  know  that  I  ought  to  invite  you  in  after  such 
an  outrageous  speech  as  that,"  she  declared.  "However, 
I  suppose  I  must  this  time.  Do  come  in  and  sit  down. 
That's  it ;  now  let  me  take  your  hat." 

The  captain  relinquished  the  hat  with  apparent  misgiv 
ing. 

"Don't  take  it  too  far  off,  Mary,"  he  cautioned.  "It's 
a  kind  of  touchy  and  particular  business  I've  come  about 
and — er — well,  there's  no  tellin*  how  soon  you'll  be 
showin'  me  through  that  door  again.  I'd  feel  easier  in 
my  mind  if  that  hat  was  where  I  could  grab  it  in  a  hurry." 

The  young  lady  was  plainly  puzzled  by  her  caller's 
manner.  She  looked  at  him  questioningly. 

"Touchy  and  particular  business?"  she  repeated.  "I 
don't  understand.  Oh,  I  know !  it's  about  the  lodge  sup 
per.  I  told  Mr.  Burgess  that  I  would  bake  a  cake,  but 
I  couldn't  do  anything  more,  I  was  too  busy.  So  if  he 
has  sent  you  to  ask  me,  Captain  Newcomb " 

"He  ain't,  he  ain't.  I  didn't  come  beggin*  cold  vittles 
this  time,  Mary,  not  even  for  the  lodge.  I'm  more  of  a 
postman  than  I  am  a  tramp.  I've  got  a  letter  for  you." 

He  took  the  letter  from  his  pocket  and  handed  it  to 
her. 

"A  letter  for  me?"  she  repeated.    "A  let—  Oh!" 

There  was  a  sharp  change  in  her  tone  as  she  saw  and 
recognized  the  handwriting.  Noah,  in  writing  of  the  in 
terview  to  Clifford,  declared:  "Right  there  the  glass  fell 

211 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

from  'Fair  and  Sunshine'  to  'Clouds,  Squalls  and  Ice 
bergs/  *  She  handed  back  the  letter  unopened. 

'Thank  you,"  she  said,  coldly.  "I  don't  wish  to  see 
it." 

"What  ?  Don't  wish  to  see  it  ?  Ain't  you  goin'  to  even 
look  and  see  what's  inside?" 

"No."  She  rose  from  her  chair.  "If  the  particular 
business  you  mentioned,"  she  said,  "has  to  do  with  the 
writer  of  that  letter,  then  I  think " 

She  did  not  finish  the  sentence,  but  Captain  Noah  fin 
ished  it  for  her. 

"Then  you  think  I'd  better  be  reachin*  for  that  hat  you 
took  away  just  now,"  he  suggested.  "Well,  all  right, 
Mary ;  I  get  you,  as  the  boys  say,  but  I  ain't  goin' — not 
yet.  The  only  way  you  can  coax  me  out  of  this  house 
for  the  next  fifteen  or  twenty  minutes  is  to  fire  me  out 
by  main  strength,  and  I  know  you're  too  much  of  a  kind- 
hearted  lady  to  do  that.  You  are,  ain't  you?  You 
wouldn't  lay  violent  hands  on  an  old  derelict  like  me,  I'm 
sure." 

His  expression  and  tone  were  so  anxiously  solemn  that 
Mary,  disturbed  and  irritated  as  she  was,  could  not  re 
press  a  smile. 

"Please  don't  be  absurd,"  she  said.  "I  don't  feel  in  the 
least  like  joking  on  that  subject,  and  if  Mr.  Clifford  sent 
you  to  me " 

The  captain  held  up  his  hand.  "Just  a  minute,  Mary," 
he  said.  "Don't  take  too  much  of  the  channel  for 
granted;  better  wait  for  the  pilot.  Irve  Clifford  didn't 
send  me  to  you.  He  don't  know  I'm  here.  He  didn't 
know  that  I  intended  comin*  here." 

212 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

"But  he  sent  that  letter  by  you." 

"He  sent  it  in  my  care  because  I  asked  him  to.  I  knew 
he'd  want  you  to  get  it,  or  any  letters  he  might  write. 
And  if  those  letters  wan't  sent  care  of  me,  or  somebody 
else  he  could  trust,  there  was  a  pretty  fair  chance  you 
never  would  get  'em." 

Miss  Barstow  did  not  answer.  She  was  gazing  at  him 
intently,  evidently  trying  to  make  up  her  mind  whether 
or  not  he  was  serious.  He  went  on,  slowly  and  earnestly. 

"Mary,"  he  said,  "I'm  responsible  for  Irve's  sendin' 
that  letter  inside  another  envelope  with  my  name  on  it. 
I  didn't  want  that  letter  to  get  in  the  hands  of  the  gang 
that  are  tryin'  to  keep  you  two  apart." 

She  had  been  standing  during  the  last  few  minutes; 
now  she  sank  slowly  into  her  chair  again. 

"The  gang?"  she  repeated.  "The  gang  who  are  trying 
to  keep — Captain  Newcornb,  what  are  you  talking 
about?" 

Noah  shook  his  head.  "I  ain't  any  more  crazy  than 
I've  always  been,  Mary,"  he  vowed,  answering  her 
thought  rather  than  her  words;  "I  know  I'm  talkin'  like 
a  movin'-picture  play,  gangs  and  plots  and  all  that. 
Course  I  don't  mean  that  anybody's  lay  In'  schemes  to 
murder  you  or  kidnap  you  and  such.  But  I  do  mean  that 
there's  a  plan  on  to  keep  you  from  marryin'  Irve  Clif 
ford." 

Once  more  the  young  lady  rose.  "I  think  you  had  bet 
ter  go,  Captain  Newcomb,"  she  said,  firmly.  "To  be  very 
frank,  I  consider  that  you  are  attempting  to  interfere 
with  matters  which  are  my  own  and  personal.  I  shall 
not  talk  of  those  matters  with  you  or  anyone  else." 

213 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

She  took  a  step  toward  the  door,  but  her  visitor  re 
mained  seated,  imperturbable  and  determined  as  ever. 

"If  you  will  not  go,"  observed  Miss  Barstow,  crisply, 
"then  I  shall.  Good  night." 

"Mary,"  he  commanded,  "you  stay  here.  Stay  here 
and  listen  to  what  I've  got  to  say.  If  you  go  and  don't 
hear  it  you'll  be  sorry  all  the  days  of  your  life.  You  can 
take  my  word  for  that:  All  the  days  of  your  life  you'll 
be  sorry.  Now  will  you  come  back  here  and  sit  down, 
like  a  good,  sensible  girl,  and  listen?  I'm  old  enough  to 
be  your  father;  I  haven't  got  any  ax  to  grind,  for  myself 
or  anybody  else ;  I've  found  out  some  things  you  ought  to 
know,  that's  all.  Will  you  listen  while  I  tell  you  what 
they  are?" 

His  tone  and  words  made  an  impression  this  time,  as 
he  intended  they  should.  She  hesitated,  then  she  slowly 
came  back  and  took  her  seat  once  more. 

"I  will  listen,"  she  said. 

"Good  enough !  I  knew  you  had  common  sense.  Mary, 
I  haven't  known  Irvin'  Clifford  so  very  long,  but  I've 
known  men  all  my  days,  made  it  my  business  to  know  'em 
and  judge  'em.  I  liked  young  Clifford  when  I  first  met 
him;  I've  been  likin'  him  better  ever  since.  If  I  know 
anything,  I  know  that  young  feller  couldn't  do  a  mean, 
dishonorable  thing  to  anybody,  man  or  woman.  He  hasn't 
been  dishonorable  to  you;  he  wasn't  to  that  other 
woman." 

Her  eyes  flashed.  "It  is  evident,"  she  said,  scornfully, 
"that  Mr.  Clifford  has  made  you  his  confidant.  I  don't 
care  to  discuss  his  character,  nor  that  of  his — friends.  If 
this  is  all  you  have  to  say— — •" 

214 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

*It  ain't.  It's  only  the  beginnin'.  But  it's  leadhV  up 
to  what  I've  got  to  say.  Yes,  Irve  did  tell  me  about  the 
trouble  between  you  and  him.  The  poor  chap  was  all 
upset  and  torn  to  ravelin's  about  it;  he  didn't  have  any 
body  but  me  to  go  to,  he  was  leavin'  town  the  next  day, 
and — well,  he  came  to  me  and  spun  his  yarn  and  asked 
my  advice.  I  didn't  have  much  to  give  him,  but  I  said 
I'd  try  and  find  out  some  things  and  I  did  tell  him  to 
write  you  care  of  me.  Then  at  least  the  letters  would 
have  a  fair  chance,  which,"  with  strong  emphasis,  "they 
might  not  have  had  if  they'd  been  sent  direct  to  this 
house. 

"After  he'd  gone/'  continued  the  captain,  "I  set  down 
and  wrote  to  my  cousin  in  New  York.  He's  a  broker  and 
one  of  them  society  fellers  the  papers  tell  about.  Also — 
and  this  was  about  as  important  as  anything — I  knew  he 
was  a  member  of  a  club  Irvin'  used  to  belong  to  there 
in  the  city.  I  thought  likely  he  might  know  somethin' 
about  Clifford  and  this  Mrs.  Emmons,  the  widow.  I 
asked  him  about  her  and  about  Irve  and  about — some 
body  else  I  was  interested  in.  His  answer  came  yesterday 
mornin'.  It's  pretty  interestin'.  Maybe  you'd  like  to 
read  it.  Here  it  is." 

He  took  it  from  his  pocket  and  would  have  handed  it 
to  her,  but  she  made  no  move  to  accept  it.  He  looked 
disappointed,  but  he  laid  it  on  the  table  beside  him  and 
went  on. 

"Perhaps  you'll  feel  different  about  lookin'  at  it  by  and 
by,"  he  said.  "I  kind  of  hope  you  will.  But  whether 
you  do  or  not  hasn't  anything  to  do  with  the  rest  of  what 
I've  got  to  tell  you.  Mary,  has  it  ever  struck  you  as 

215 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

funny  the  prejudice  your  stepdad  has  against  your  geltin* 
married  ?" 

She  made  no  reply,  but  it  was  evident  the  question 
aroused  her  curiosity. 

"Has  it?"  repeated  Noah.  "Not  to  Clifford  alone,  I 
don't  mean,  but  isn't  it  true  that  Balaam  has  been  dead 
set  against  you  havin'  young  men  friends  at  any  time? 
Hasn't  he  been  more  or  less  insultin'  to  those  you  have 
had  and  done  his  best  to  keep  'em  away  from  here  and 
from  you?" 

Mary  reflected.  "Why,  yes,"  she  said,  "he  has  seemed 
to  object  to  my  having  such  friends,  but  his  objections 
have  not  influenced  my  friendships.  I  do  not  consider 
myself  under  obligation  to  Mr.  Griggs." 

"Sho,  sho!  course  you  don't,  course  you  don't.  But 
it's  kind  of  funny  he  should  be  so  anxious  to  keep  you 
from  meetin*  and  knowin'  young  men.  You  might  say 
'twas  because  he  didn't  want  you  to  marry  and  go  and 
leave  him,  but — but  he  could  get  another  housekeeper  for 
at  least  as  little  as  your  clothes  and  upkeep  cost  him,  and 
as  for  his  lovin'  you — well,  you'll  excuse  me,  but  your 
stepfather  don't  bear  the  reputation  of  bein'  an  over- 
sentimental  man." 

Miss  Barstow  smiled  faintly.  "He  isn't,"  she  said. 
"And  yet  when  I  told  him  of  my  intention  of  going  to 
Boston  and  earning  my  living  he  objected  strongly  and 
told  me  how  much  he  cared  for  me." 

"Did,  eh?  Humph!  Was  that  after  you  and  Irvin* 
parted  company  or  before?  Excuse  me  for  askin',  but 
it's  all  part  of  what  Fin  on  the  track  of.M 

216 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

The  answer  was  not  given  immediately,  and  when  given 
was  briefness  itself. 

"Before/'  said  Mary. 

"Yes,  yes,  I  see.  And — and  what  made  you  tell  him 
you  thought  of  leavin'  him  ?  Course  you  needn't  tell  any 
of  this  unless  you  want  to.  It  ain't  just  nosiness,  honest 
it  ain't." 

"I  told  him  because — well,  because  he  attempted  to 
order  me  to  break  off  my  acquaintanceship  with  Mr.  Clif 
ford/' 

"I  bet  you !  It  all  fits  in.  Yes,  sir,  it  all  fits  in.  He 
didn't  like  the  idea  of  your  goin'  to  Boston,  either,  did 
he?" 

"No.    But,  really,  Captain  Newcomb " 

"Just  a  minute  now,  just  a  minute.  Gettin'  clearer 
every  minute.  We'll  be  out  of  the  fog  pretty  soon.  Now, 
Mary,  here's  another  somethin'  for  you  to  think  of.  How 
did  your  stepdad  come  to  know  of  this  Emmons  woman  ? 
Please  don't  get  mad.  I  won't  talk  very  much  about  her, 
I  promise  you.  How  did  he  come  to  know  ?" 

"She  wrote  him.  Surely  Mr.  Clifford  must  have  told 
you  that/' 

"Yes,  but  why  did  she  write  him  ?  Who  told  her  there 
was  such  a  person  as  Balaam  Griggs?  Or  such  a  girl 
as  you  ?  Or  that  Irve  Clifford  was  here  in  Trumet  ?  He 
hadn't  seen  her  or  heard  of  her  for  six  years.  Who  gave 
her  all  these  particulars?  Have  you  thought  of  that, 
Mary?" 

Her  expression  showed  that  she  thought  of  it,  and  that 
it  had  puzzled  her.  She  was  interested  now;  her  gaze 

217 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

did  not  leave  his  face.     He  noticed  this  and  chuckled 
triumphantly. 

"Curious,  to  say  the  least,  her  writin',  wan't  it?"  he 
said.  "Balaam  didn't  know  her,  nor  of  her.  He  never 
mentioned  her  afore  he  got  that  letter,  did  he  ?" 

"No." 

"No.  Looks  almost  as  if  somebody  who  did  know  her 
and  had  known  Irvin'  had  given  both  Balaam  and  her  the 
tip.  Eh?  Looks  that  way  to  me.  And  it  looks,  too,  as 
if  that  somebody  might  be  helpin'  your  stepdad  to  get  rid 
of  Clifford.  Don't  that  sound  kind  of  reasonable  ?  Think, 
Mary,  think." 

Mary  was  thinking,  there  was  no  doubt  of  that. 

"But  who  ?"  she  said,  slowly.  "Who  ?  You  know  more 
than  you  have  told  me,  Captain  Newcomb.  Who  was  it  ?" 

The  captain's  eyes  snapped.  "Mary,"  he  asked,  "has 
Mr.  Calvin  Wentworth  been  a  little  mite  more  neighborly 
here  lately  than  he  used  to  be?" 

Mary  slowly  leaned  back  in  her  chair. 

"Mr.  Calvin  Wentworth?"  she  repeated. 

Captain  Noah  nodded.  "Um-hm,"  he  said,  "Mr.  Cal 
vin  Wentworth,  late  of  New  York  City,  dog  fancier, 
gaiters  wearer  and  general  lily  of  the  field.  Hasn't  he 
been  a  little  mite  thicker  with  your  stepdad  than  he  used 
to  be?  Ain't  he  been  a  little  mite  more — er — contagious, 
as  you  might  say,  in  these  latitudes  durin'  the  last  week 
or  so?  What  do  you  think  about  it?" 

Instead  of  answering  his  question  she  asked  one. 

"Captain  Newcomb,"  she  demanded,  "what  do  you 
mean?  What  reason  have  you  for  thinking  Mr.  Went 
worth  has — has " 

218 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

The  captain  broke  in  without  waiting  for  her  to  finish. 

"I  tell  you  my  reasons  in  just  a  minute,  Mary,"  he  said, 
"but  first  you  just  please  te1!  me:  Hasn't  Wentworth  been 
more — er — numerous,  prevalent — whatever  you  want  to 
call  it — round  here  durin'  the  last  week?" 

Mary  reflected.  "Why,  yes,"  she  replied,  somewhat 
doubtfully,  "I — I  think  he  has.  I  have  seen  him  with 
Mr.  Griggs  several  times  recently;  he  has  called  here 
twice  this  week.  He  was  here  last  evening  for  an  hour 
or  so,  but " 

"Just  a  minute,  Mary ;  just  a  minute.  Has  he  been — er 
—well,  a  little  mite  more  sociable  with — er — excuse  me, 
with  you — with  you  than  he  was?" 

"With  me?    What  do  you  mean?" 

"Well,  it's  kind  of  hard  to  make  it  plainer  without  run- 
nin'  the  risk  of  havin'  to  grab  for  that  hat  of  mine.  What 
I  mean  is,  has  it  occurred  to  you  that — that  possibly 
Cousin  Calvin  might  be  a  candidate  for — for — well,  for 
Irve's — er — vacant  chair,  as  you  might  say?" 

The  color  rose  in  Miss  Barstow's  cheeks. 

"Captain  Newcomb,"  she  said,  "you  are — really,  you 
are " 

"Yes — yes,  Mary,  I  know  I  am.  But,  honest,  I  can't 
help  it,  I've  got  to  be — now.  Has  he  shown  a  willin'ness 
to  be  more  folksy  and  companionable  with  you?  Has  he, 
now  you  come  to  think  it  over?" 

"No,"  indignantly ;  "of  course  he  hasn't.  That  is,  he — 
Well,  he  called  last  evening,  and  one  or  two  evenings  be 
fore,  but  it  was  to  see  Mr.  Griggs.  Of  course  it  was. 
Why,  I  scarcely  know  Mr.  Wrentworth." 

"Sartin.  I  understand  that,  but  unless  I'm  so  far  off 
15  219 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

soundin's  that  I  couldn't  get  bottom  with  the  Atlantic 
cable,  he  means  you  shall  know  him  better  afore  long. 
Mary,  I  may  as  well  tell  you  now  that  I've  had  my  eye 
on  Cousin  Calvin — that's  what  Obe  Burgess  calls  him, 
you  know — ever  since  I  landed  here.  And  he's  been 
somethin'  of  a  mystery.  He's  an  invalid,  so  he  says,  but 
he  don't  act — or  eat — like  one.  He's  a  New  York  society 
high-roller,  'cordin'  to  his  accounts,  but  he's  spendin'  his 
summers  and  winters  rollin'  in  this  little  sand  pile.  He's 
rich  as  Aunt  Tabby  Small's  Sunday  dinner  puddin',  and 
that  was  made  out  of  a  half  cup  of  flour  and  the  rest 
shortenin*.  Yet  rich  as  he's  supposed  to  be,  he  don't 
spend  a  cent,  unless  he  can  borrow  it,  and  when  he  bor 
rows  it  the  only  way  you  can  tell  the  loan  from  a  present 
is  by  sewin'  a  tag  on  it.  Now  why  should  a  rich  man  and 
a  society  man,  even  if  he  is  an  invalid,  pick  out  Trumet 
to  die  in  and  Obadiah  Burgess  to  die  on  ?  I  couldn't  see 
why,  for  the  life  of  me  I  couldn't.  And  because  I  was  a 
friend  of  Obe's  and  because  I  owed  the  little  feller  my 
life,  as  you  might  say,  I  set  in  to  find  out. 

"In  that  letter  from  the  broker  cousin  of  mine — the 
one  I  told  you  about,  Mary — there's  considerate  inter- 
estin'  information  about  Cousin  Calvin.  Information  that 

clears  the  skyline  considerable.     He " 

The  young  lady  interrupted. 

"Captain  Newcomb,"  she  said,  "unless  you  can  prove 
to  me  that  Mr.  Wentworth's  personal  affairs  have  some 
bearing  upon  mine  I  can't  see  why  I  should  be  told  their 
details.  [Admitting  that  he  is  a  mysterious  person — what 
of  it?  !A"s  I  told  you,  I  scarcely  know  him." 
"And  as  I  told  you,  you're  in  a  fair  way  to  know  him 

220 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

a  whole  lot  better.  Now  if  you'll  let  me  read  you  this 
broker  feller's  letter " 

"I  can't  see  that  that  is  necessary." 

"Can't,  eh  ?  Well,  then  I'll  have  to  prove  to  you  that 
'tis.  We'll  leave  that  letter  one  side  for  another  little 
spell  and  instead  of  tellin'  you  what  I've  found  out,  I'll 
tell  you  first  what  I  guessed.  As  I  said,  if  Wentworth 
was  rich  and  a  society  pet  and  all,  then  I  couldn't  make 
him  fit  down  here.  But  if  he  wan't  rich  and  only  a  has- 
been,  a  gone-to-seed  sunflower,  so  to  speak,  who  was  too 
lazy  to  work,  but  havin'  heard  of  relation  Obadiah's 
cornin'  into  house  and  money,  got  the  idea  of  spongin' 
a  soft  and  easy  livin'  by  pretendin'  to  be  a  well-off  invalid 
who  was  goin'  to  will  Obe  every  cent  when  he  died,  then 
I  could  make  him  fit  like  a  tender  foot  in  an  old  shoe. 
And  that's  the  way  I  had  him  entered  in  my  log — waitin' 
information  from  my  broker  cousin,  of  course — when 
this  new  development,  this  one  with  you  and  Balaam  and 
Irve  Clifford  in  it,  bobbed  up  to  stump  me. 

"When  Irvin'  come  to  me  in  his  trouble,  poor  chap,  and 
told  me  of  your  stepdad's  facin'  him  with  the  letter  from 
the  Emmons  woman,  it  was  plain  enough  that  somebody 
else,  some  cleverer  critter  than  Balaam,  had  had  a  hand 
in  it.  And  suspicion  p'inted  right  off  to  Cousin  Calvin 
because  he  was  from  New  York,  had  known  Irve  over 
there,  and  was  in  a  position  to  know  something  very 
likely,  of  Irve's  bein'  engaged  to  the  woman  and  all  the 
rest  of  it.  But,  as  you  yourself  said  when  I  first  hinted 
at  it,  why  should  he  want  to  make  trouble  between  you 
and  Clifford? 

"With  a  different  man  to  deal  with  there  might  have 
221 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

been  two  or  three  answers.  He  might  have  hated  Irve, 
had  a  grudge  against  him  or  something,  and  wanted  to 
get  even.  Well,  in  a  small  way  maybe  he  has,  but  Irve's 
perfectly  sure  it  ain't  a  big  enough  grudge  to  make  as 
lazy  a  man  as  Wentworth  go  out  of  his  way  to  square  it. 
He  might — you'll  have  to  excuse  me,  Mary — have  fell 
in  love  with  you  and  wanted  to  get  you  for  his  own." 

"Captain  Newcomb!" 

"Sartin,  he  might.  I  should  be  tempted  myself  if  I 
was  a  hundred  and  odd  year  younger.  However,  knowin' 
Cousin  Calvin,  I  didn't  believe  that  was  it.  No  matter 
how  much  he  might  be  in  love  with  you  or  anybody  else, 
he  was  too  much  in  love  with  his  precious  self  to  under 
take  to  care  for  and  work  for  a  wife.  If  that  wife  was 
liable  to  bring  him  money,  even  if  'twan't  a  very  great 
deal  of  money,  then  again  I  could  see.  But  you,  I  under 
stood,  weren't  wealthy  in  your  own  right ;  eh,  Mary  ?" 

Miss  Barstow  smiled  faintly. 

"Scarcely,"  she  said. 

"Excuse  me  for  askin',  but  have  you  any  money  of 
your  own?" 

"A  few  dollars  in  the  savings-bank,  that  is  all." 

"And  you  never  have  had  any,  or  never  was  told  that 
you  was  liable  to  have  any?" 

"Of  course  not.    What  do  you  mean  ?" 

The  captain's  only  reply  was  a  satisfied  nod. 

"So  that  seemed  to  settle  that  answer  to  the  riddle," 
he  said.  "But  on  the  other  side,  there  was  Calvin  and 
your  stepdad  chummin'  round  together  more  and  more, 
thick  as — well,  perhaps  we  won't  say  thick  as  thieves 
'cause  that  wouldn't  hardly  be  polite,  but  thick  as  hasty- 

222 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

puddin',  anyhow.  What  made  'em  so  thick  all  at  once? 
They  ain't  any  more  alike  than  a  clam  and  a  hummin'- 
bird.  I  couldn't  see  any  reason,  and  yet  all  the  time  I 
was  sartin  there  was  one.  Well,  Mary,  today  I  found 
the  reason." 

Mary  gasped,  "You  found — what?"  she  cried. 

"I  found  out  the  reason  why  Calvin  Wentworth  should 
want  to  get  you  away  from  Irvin'  Clifford.  Not  only 
that,  but  I  cal'late  I've  found  out  why  Balaam  Griggs  is 
so  dead  sot  against  the  idea  of  your  marryin'  at  all.  As 
I  kind  of  suspected,  both  of  the  reasons  hang  together. 
Eh  ?  Now  what  do  you  say  to  that  ?" 

She  did  not  say  anything,  in  words,  but  her  eyes  asked 
all  sorts  of  questions.  The  captain  chuckled. 

"I  don't  suppose  you'd  care  to  hear  what  those  reasons 
was,  would  you?"  he  inquired.  "Long's  you  didn't  want 
to  read  that  broker's  letter,  why " 

"Captain  Newcomb!" 

"Oh,  all  right!  all  right!  Don't  look  at  me  that  way, 
I've  got  weak  nerves.  The  way  I  found  out,  Mary — 
or,  rather,  what  put  me  on  the  track  of  findin'  out  was 
just  dumb  luck.  I  met  a  feller  named  Badger,  a  lawyer 
from  Ostable  he  is,  and  somethin'  he  said  gave  me  ths 
end  of  the  string." 

"What  was  it?    What  did  he  say?" 

"Why,  he  told  me  that  your  stepfather  and  our  friend 
Wentworth  had  been  over  to  Ostable  ten  days  or  so  ago, 
together,  in  an  automobile." 

"Was  that  all?  Why,  I  could  have  told  you  that;  Mr. 
Griggs  borrowed  Mr.  Rogers'  car  and  Mr.  Wentworth 
offered  to  drive  it  for  the  fun  of  doing  so.  There  was 

223 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

no  secret  about  their  going.  Mr.  Griggs  had  some  busi 
ness  there,  something  about  a  mortgage." 

"Um-hm,  so  Badger  said.  But  Cousin  Calvin  found 
some  other  kind  of  business  to  keep  him  busy  while  your 
stepdad  was  mortgagin'.  He  went  perusin'  down  to  the 
Probate  Clerk's  office  and  put  in  his  time  pretendin'  to  be 
a  t ravelin'  Westerner  interested  in  the  wills  of  dead 
folks." 

"Wills?  Mr.  Wentworth  was  interested  in  wills? 
What  wills?" 

"Well,  now,  that's  what  I  asked,  Mary,  and  the  answer 
I  got  sent  me  to  Ostable  will  chasin'.  I  went  over  there 
yesterday  in  my  Pancake — my  auto,  I  mean.  I  found  the 
will  Calvin  was  so  interested  in  and  I  made  a  copy  of  it. 
Here  is  the  copy." 

He  took  a  folded  sheet  of  paper  from  his  coat  pocket. 
Mary  stared  at  the  paper  and  at  his  face. 

"But  what  is  it,  Captain  Newcomb?"  she  begged. 
"What  is  it?  Has  it  anything  to  do  with  me?" 

The  captain  nodded  solemnly.  "Um-hm,"  he  said,  "it 
has  a  whole  lot  to  do  with  you.  It's  Ira  Barstow's  will, 
Ira  Barstow  that  used  to  live  in  Wapatomac." 

"My  father?    Is  that  my  father's  will?" 

"It's  a  copy  of  your  father's  will,  or  of  a  part  of  it." 

"But — but  are  you  sure?  I  never  knew  that  he  left 
a  will." 

"  'Pears  that  he  did.  At  any  rate  I  found  this  one  re 
corded  over  there  to  Ostable.  Here  it  is,  Mary.  I  warn 
you,"  he  added,  solemnly,  "that  it's  goin*  to  surprise  you 
some.  Leastways  it  did  me." 

She  took  the  paper  from  his  hand  and,  wonderingly, 

224 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

began  to  read  what  was  written  upon  it.  She  read  on  for 
a  few  lines  and  then  uttered  an  exclamation. 

"Oh !"  she  cried.    "Why " 

Captain  Noah  grinned.  "That's  what  I  said/'  he  ob 
served,  "and  then  some." 

Mary  read  the  writing  through  to  the  end.  Her  face, 
when  she  looked  up,  was  pale. 

"Why— why !"  she  stammered.  "It— it  can't  be,  Cap 
tain  Newcomb!  It  isn't  true,  is  it?" 

"True  as  preachin',  I  believe,"  he  said,  with  a  brisk 
nod,  "and  a  good  deal  easier  to  prove  true  than  somv 
preachin'.  That's  a  copy  of  your  father's  will,  Mary. 
When  he  died  he  left  you  that  much  money  in  trust  to  be 
yours  when  you  come  of  age  or  married.  Twenty-five 
thousand  ain't  enough  to  buy  a  fleet  of  ocean  liners,  I 
give  in  to  that,  but  it  is  enough  to  keep  the  wolf  away 
from  the  door  and  even  out  of  sight  from  the  upstairs 
windows." 

She  put  her  hand  to  her  forehead.  "But  are  you  sure, 
Captain  Newcomb?"  she  pleaded.  "Are  you  sure?  Did 
father  ever  have  any  such  sum  to  leave?  I  never  heard 
that  he  did.  My  mother  would  hare  told  me,  wouldn't 
she?  Isn't  it  possible  that  father  was — was  mistaken — 
was " 

"Was  crazy,  or  somethin'  like  that,  you  mean?  Well, 
Mary,  that's  one  of  the  first  things  that  run  across  my 
mind  after  I  see  the  will.  And  so  today  the  Pancake  and 
I  took  another  cruise,  to  Wapatomac  this  time.  I  asked 
some  questions  around  and  made  it  my  business  to  meet 
some  of  the  folks  that  used  to  know  your  folks  when  they 
lived  there.  I  found  out  that  your  dad  was  generally 

225 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

reported  to  be  quite  comfortably  off,  to  have  made  some 
money  and  saved  it.  I  found  out,  too,  that  you  was  the 
apple  of  his  eye,  so  'twas  natural  enough  that  he  should 
take  care  to  provide  for  you  when  he  died." 

"But — but  why  was  I  never  told  of  this  money?  If 
there  is  any  such  sum,  or  ever  was,  why  did  my  mother 
never  speak  of  it?" 

"That's  a  good,  sensible  question.  You'd  have  made 
a  first-rate  lawyer,  Mary.  The  answer  to  that,  I  cal'late, 
is  in  another  part  of  that  will,  one  I  didn't  take  the  pains 
to  make  a  copy  of.  In  that  will  the  persons  your  twenty- 
five  thousand  was  put  in  trust  with  was  your  mother  and 
Mr.  Balaam  Griggs  of  Trumet,  Mass.  They  was  joint 
executors  so  named." 

"Mr.  Griggs!    Mr.  Griggs  was  executor?" 

"Yes.  Seems  he  and  your  father  had  been  tradin'  in 
real  estate  together.  Balaam's  business  shrewdness,  I 
cal'late,  had  made  considerable  impression  on  your  pa. 
Probably  he  thought  'twould  be  a  good  idea  to  have  a 
business  man's  advice  to  help  your  mother  in  her  man- 
agin',  and  where  could  a  body  find  a  better  business  chap 
than  Brother  Griggs?  See,  don't  you?" 

Mary  evidently  did  not  see  clearly. 

"But  why  didn't  Mother  tell  me?"  she  repeated. 

"That  was  Balaam,  as  I  look  at  it.  You  were  a  little 
girl  then,  and,  naturally  enough,  they  wouldn't  tell  you 
of  money  that  would  be  yours  when  you  was  twenty-one 
or  got  married.  Either  happenin'  seemed  a  long  ways 
off  then.  And  Balaam's  influence  over  the  family  prob 
ably  kept  gettin'  stronger  and  stronger.  Five  years  later 

226 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

'twas  strong  enough  to  get  the  widow  to  marry  him. 
What  'twas  after  that  you  know  better'n  I  do,  Mary." 

Mary,  leaning  forward,  her  chin  on  her  hand,  was 
thinking  hard. 

"She  was  almost  his  slave,"  she  said,  slowly.  "He 
seemed  to  have  the  faculty  of  making  her  do  anything  he 
wished." 

"Um-hm.  Sartin,  so  I  judged.  He  told  her,  probably, 
never  to  mention  will  or  money  to  you  and  so  she  never 
did." 

"I  remember  once,  during  her  last  sickness,  she  told 
me  that  she  was  happy  knowing  that  I  was  so  well  pro 
vided  for.  I  thought  she  meant  provided  with  a  home 
and,"  bitterly,  "Mr.  Griggs'  society.  She  may  have  meant 
—this." 

"Don't  doubt  she  did,  poor  woman.  Course  Balaam 
had  told  her  he  should  turn  over  the  money  to  you  soon 
as  you  came  of  age." 

Miss  Barstow  drew  a  long  breath.  Some  of  her  color 
had  returned,  but  she  was  still  agitated  and  excited. 

"It  doesn't  seem  as  if  it  could  be  true,"  she  declared. 
"Perhaps  it  isn't  true  now.  Perhaps  the  money  has  gone, 
has  been  spent  or  lost  in  speculation.  Perhaps  that  is 
why  he  has  never  told." 

Noah  shook  his  head. 

"Don't  you  believe  it,"  he  said.  "No,  it  ain't  been 
spent,  Balaam  Griggs  wouldn't  spend  twenty-five  thou 
sand  dollars,  not  in  twenty-five  lifetimes  I  was  goin'  to 
say.  And  the  only  speculatin'  in  any  deal  he  goes  into 
is  just  a  speculation  as  to  how  much  the  other  feller 
loses.  No,  he's  got  it  safe  and  sound." 

227 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

''Then  you  think  he  means  to  steal  it.  He  must,  for 
my  twenty-first  birthday  was  nearly  a  year  ago." 

"He  wouldn't  call  it  stealin'.  If  you  taxed  him  with 
it  he'd  most  likely  say  he  was  just  keepin'  it  for  you. 
And  the  longer  you  don't  know  about  it  the  longer  he 
can  keep  it  and  the  five  or  six  or  seven  per  cent  interest 
along  with  it.  And  you  see  now  why  he's  been  so  dread 
fully  anxious  you  shouldn't  marry,  don't  you?" 

"I — I  don't  know  that  I  do." 

"Sartin  sure  you  do.  The  minute  a  husband  comes 
along  there's  a  new  and  mighty  dangerous  figure  in  the 
cal'latin'.  That  husband,  for  one  thing,  takes  you  out 
from  under  your  stepfather's  wing,  out  where  you  may 
hear  somethin'  or  learn  somethin'  about  this  will  any  day. 
Or  the  husband  may  learn.  And  the  said  will  puts  a 
double  knot  in  the  halliard  where  it  says  the  money  shall 
be  yours  when  you  marry.  Balaam'll  shave  the  wind'ard 
side  of  the  law  close  enough  to  blister  the  paint  on  his 
plankin',  but  he  don't  enjoy  takin'  a  double  risk  of  jail 
any  more  than  anybody  else.  The  single  'comin'  of  age' 
risk  is  enough  to  keep  him  worried,  I  rather  guess.  Now 
you  see,  don't  you?" 

Mary  did  not  answer,  although  the  expression  of  her 
face  proved  that  she  saw  and  understood.  If  Mr.  Griggs 
had  seen  that  expression,  he,  too,  might  have  understood 
•— and  trembled. 

"And  Mr.  Wentwcrth?"  she  asked,  after  a  moment. 

"Yes,  indeed ;  mustn't  forget  Cousin  Calvin.  How  he 
got  on  the  track  of  the  will  I  don't  know.  Very  likely 
Balaam  dropped  a  hint  and  he  picked  it  up.  But  that 
don't  make  any  real  difference ;  we  know  he  went  to  the 

228 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

Probate  Court  and  saw  the  will,  and  we  know,  too,  that 
not  very  long  after  that  your  stepfather  got  the  letter 
from  the  Emmons  woman.  If  you  was  a  poor  girl,  real 
poor,  it  probably  wouldn't  have  been  worth  the  Honor 
able  Calvin's  while  to  interfere  along  of  you  and  Irvin'. 
But  twenty-five  thousand,  although  it  ain't  a  kerosene  ile 
fortune,  is  good  enough  for " 

"Stop  i  stop !  don't  say  any  more,  please.  I  can't  bear 
it.  Captain  Newcomb,  you  said  you  had  a  letter  from  a 
friend  of  yours  in  New  York  which  gave  some  informa 
tion  concerning  this — this  man  we  have  just  been  speak 
ing  of." 

"Cousin  Calvin?    Yes,  indeed;  tells  a  lot  about  him." 

"May  I  see  the  letter?" 

Considering  that  it  had  been  offered  her  twice  already, 
the  question  was  rather  superfluous.  However,  Captain 
Noah  made  no  mention  of  the  offers  nor  her  refusals. 
Instead,  he  handed  her  Mr.  Chase's  letter  with  satisfac 
tion  and  alacrity.  Others  than  Calvin  Wentworth  were 
mentioned  in  that  letter,  and  this  the  captain,  wily  man, 
knew. 

Mary  read  the  letter  through,  her  companion  watching 
her  intently  as  she  did  so.  Then  she  rose  to  her  feet. 
Her  face  was  pale  no  longer.  Now  there  was  a  crimson 
flush  on  her  cheeks  and  an  ominous  flash  in  her  eyes. 

"Well,  Mary,"  queried  Captain  Noah,  "what  are  you 
cal'Iatin'  to  plan  to  do?" 

She  turned  and  faced  him.  "Do?"  she  cried,  fiercely. 
"I  don't  know  what  I  shall  do  now.  But  tomorrow  morn 
ing  I  shall  tell  my  stepfather  what  I  think  of  him  and 

229 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

leave  his  house  forever.  After  that  I  shall  consult  a  law 
yer  concerning  the  recovery  of  my  money,  I  suppose." 

The  captain  shook  his  head. 

"I  hope  you  won't,  Mary,"  he  said,  quietly.  "Won't 
go  away  from  here,  I  mean.  I  know  you  want  to,  I 
know  'twill  be  a  trial  to  you  to  stay ;  but  I'm  hopin'  you 
will  stay  for  a  little  while  longer  anyhow." 

She  looked  at  him  scornfully,  incredulously. 

"Stay  here?"  she  repeated.  "Stay  here,  with  that  man? 
Captain  Newcomb,  what  do  you  think  I  am?" 

"I  think  you're  a  sensible  girl.  I  think  you'll  want 
to  do  the  right  thing,  right  for  all  hands.  And  I  think, 
Mary,  that  maybe,  after  you've  come  to  think  it  over, 
you'll  be  willin'  to  put  yourself  out  a  little  mite  for — well, 
if  for  no  other  reason  than  just  because  I  ask  it  as  a  per 
sonal  favor/' 

Her  expression  changed.  She  held  out  her  hands  to 
him  impulsively. 

"Please  forgive  me,  Captain  Newcomb,"  she  begged. 
"I  haven't  even  thanked  you.  You  have  taken  so  much 
trouble  for  me  and " 

"Now,  now,  now,  Mary,  don't  make  any  mistake.  What 
I've  been  findin'  out  wan't  entirely  on  your  account.  I'm 
mighty  glad  I  did  find  it  out,  if  only  for  you ;  but  I  had 
other  reasons  for  wantin'  to  learn  the  workin's  of  the 
Griggs  and  Wentworth  combination.  I'm  tryin'  to  help 
poor  little  Obe  Burgess  out  of  his  troubles,  you  remem 
ber.  Yes,  and — er — there's  another  friend  of  mine,  a 
young  feller  that  I  believe  has  been  pretty  badly  used. 
Not  by  you,"  hastily.  "No,  no,  no,  not  by  you,  of  course ; 
you  just  misunderstood.  But  by  that  same  combination. 

230 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

Now,  as  I  told  you  in  the  beginning  Mary,  I've  got  a  let 
ter  from  that  young  feller  in  my  pocket  and  it's  got  your 
name  on  the  envelope.  If " 

But  she  interrupted. 

"What  was  your  reason  for  asking  me  to  stay  here?" 
she  asked.  "What  was  the  personal  favor  you  wished 
me  to  do  for  you  ?" 

Captain  Noah,  whose  hand  was  in  the  pocket  contain 
ing  the  letter  he  had  just  mentioned,  looked  a  trifle  dis 
appointed.  However,  he  made  the  best  of  the  inevitable, 
withdrew  the  hand  empty,  and  began  to  talk,  earnestly 
and  at  some  length.  Miss  Barstow  listened,  at  first  with 
mild  interest,  then  with  apparent  resentment  and  indig 
nation,  but  at  last  with  amusement  and  a  faint  smile. 

"I  see,"  she  said,  when  he  had  finished.  "It  would  help 
your  plans,  of  course.  And  I  certainly  owe  you  all  the 
help  I  can  give.  But,"  with  a  shiver  of  disgust,  "it  would 
be  very  hard  for  me." 

"So  'twould,  so  'twould.  But,  in  a  way,  knowin'  what 
you  know,  'twould  have  a  little  mite  of  fun  in  it.  And 
if  it  did  work  out  right,  there'd  be  what  the  minister  calls 
a  righteous  -etribution  comin'  for  them  that  deserved 
it,  eh?  Yes,  I  know  'twill  be  hard  for  you,  Mary,  but 
'twill  keep  everything  quiet  and  unsuspicious  while  I'm 
workin'  at  the  rest  of  my  picture  puzzles.  As  I  see  it, 
there  mustn't  either  of  those  swabs — excuse  me;  gentle 
men,  I  should  say — get  a  hint  that  I'm  anything  but  the 
most  innocent  green  cabbage  head  in  the  back  garden. 
And  there's  still  another  reason  for  my  hopin'  you'll  stay 
here,  a  reason  that's  pretty  important  to  me  and  some 
body  else  you  won't  let  me  name,  I  suppose.  .  .  .  Oh,. 

231 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

well,  all  right,  all  right.  Now  what  do  you  say,  Mary? 
Will  you  stay?" 

Her  answer  was  not  entirely  satisfactory. 

"I  will  think  it  over,"  she  said,  "and  let  you  know  to 
morrow.  And,  oh,  Captain  Newcomb,  you  will  forgive 
me  if  I  don't  thank  you  as  I  should.  The  fact  is  I  am  so 
— so  disturbed  and  agitated — I  have  had  such  a  shock 
and  surprise —  But  I  am  grateful,  I  really  am." 

At  the  door  in  the  hall  the  captain  stopped  to  shake 
hands  and  say  good  night.  And  there,  where  it  was  so 
dark  that  he  could  not  see  her  face  plainly,  he  received 
an  agreeable  surprise. 

"Captain,"  she  said,  hesitatingly,  "there  is  one — one 
thing  which — which  might  help  me  in  reaching  that  de 
cision  I  am  to  give  you  tomorrow." 

Captain  Noah  turned. 

"Eh?"  he  cried.  "Eh?  You  don't  say!  What  is  it,  for 
mercy  sakes  ?  If  I  can  get  it  for  you,  you  shall  have  it, 
I  swan  to  man.  What  is  it,  Mary  ?" 

"It  is — well,  it  is  that  letter  you  have  in  your  pocket. 
Not  the  one  from  the  broker,  the — the  other." 


CHAPTER   XV 

IT  was,  perhaps,  a  week  later — that  is,  the  week  fol 
lowing  that  in  which  Captain  Noah  and  Mary  Bar- 
stow  had  their  long  and  important  interview,  that 
Miss  Sarepta  Hatch  first  began  to  notice  that  Mr.  Calvin 
Wentworth  was  calling  more  and  more  frequently  at  the 
Griggs  home.  Miss  Sarepta,  it  will  be  remembered,  was 
Balaam's  next-door  neighbor  on  the  right  as  Mrs.  El 
vira  Ginn  was  on  the  left.  And  there  were  few  happen 
ings  in  their  vicinity  which  one  or  the  other,  or  both, 
of  these  ladies  did  not  notice. 

In  this  case  the  discovery  was  probably  simultaneous,, 
although  it  was  Miss  Hatch  who  first  mentioned  it.  She 
happened  in  at  Mrs.  Ginn's  to  return  the  cupful  of  sugar 
she  had  borrowed  the  month  before. 

"Well,  Elviry,"  she  said,  knowingly,  "I  suppose  you've 
noticed  it,  ain't  you?" 

Mrs.  Ginn  just  then  was  noticing  the  fact  that  al 
though  Sarepta  had  borrowed  a  coffee-cupful  of  sugar 
she  was  returning  a  teacupful.  So  her  reply  was  given 
rather  absently. 

"Eh?"  she  said.    "Noticed?    Noticed  what?" 

"What's  been  goin'  on  to  the  next  house.     Looks  as 

233 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

if  'twas  a  case  of  'Get  up,  Jack ;  John,  sit  down'  to  me." 

"  'John  sit  down  ?'     John  who  ?" 

"Oh,  that's  just  a  sayin'.  It  don't  mean  nobody  spe 
cial.  I  mean  it  looks  as  if  'twas  a  case  of  'When  the 
cat's  away  the  mice'll  play/  Don't  you  think  so?" 

"What's  cat's  away?  Balaam  Griggs's?  If  you  mean 
that  ola  raveled-eared  tomcat  of  his,  it  ain't  away  be 
cause  I  see  it  no  later'n  yesterday  eatin'  a  chicken  out 
back  of  the  woodshed." 

"Eatin'  a  chicken!  Land  sakes  alive!  What  did  you 
do  to  it,  Elviry?" 

"I  didn't  do  nothin'  to  it.  It  didn't  kill  the  chicken 
itself.  'Twas  one  that  that  Mr.  Wentworth,  who's  stop- 
pin'  up  to  Obadiah  Burgess's,  run  over  with  his  automo 
bile  when  he  came  to  take  Mary  Barstow  out  to  ride. 
And  'twas  one  of  Balaam's  chickens  anyhow,  not  yours 
nor  mine,  Sarepta." 

"Well,  that's  a  comfort,  although  I  bet  Balaam  would 
be  mad  if  he  knew  it.  So  you  see  Mr.  Wentworth  take 
the  Barstow  girl  out  ridin',  did  you?" 

"Yes,  I  see  him.  I  stood  behind  my  front-door  blinds 
in  the  hall  and  I  could  see  and  hear  'em,  too.  'Twas 
Cap'n  Newcomb's  auto  they  had,  wan't  it?" 

"Looked  like  it  to  me.  You  don't  know  where  they 
went,  though,  I  guess." 

"No,"  with  reluctance,  "I  can't  say's  I  do.  And  I 
guess  likely  you  don't,  neither." 

"Yes,  I  do.  They  went  down  to  the  village,  and  she 
done  some  errands,  and  then  they  stopped  in  to  La- 
throp's  and  he  treated  her  to  ice-cream.  It's  the  second 

234 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

time  he's  bought  ice-cream  for  her — and  she's  let  him, 
too.  Don't  that  look  kind  of  significant  to  you?" 

Although  she  tried  very  hard  to  appear  indifferent, 
Mrs.  Ginn's  envy  at  her  friend's  superior  information 
showed  itself  in  her  tone  as  she  said : 

"Oh,  yes,  I  suppose  you  might  call  it  kind  of  signifi 
cant — if  you're  sure  it's  so." 

"Oh,  I'm  sure.  Evelina  Dodge  told  me  herself  and 
you  know  her  Joshua  is  clerkin'  to  Lathrop's  this  sum 
mer." 

Elvira  could  not  successfully  contradict  such  authen 
tic  information,  so  she  merely  sniffed. 

"  'Twas  Mr.  Wentworth  and  Mary  I  meant  when  I 
said  the  mice  would  play,"  went  on  Miss  Hatch.  "Irv- 
in'  Clifford's  gone  West,  to  Omaha  I  think  'tis " 

Elvira  interrupted.  "No,  it  'tain't,  it's  Saint  Louis. 
Ethelinda  Doane  down  to  the  Mansion  House  told  me 
'twas  Saint  Louis.  And  she  ought  to  know  'cause  Mr. 
Clifford  boarded  there  all  the  time  he  was  in  Tru- 
met." 

"Well,  I  don't  care  if  he  did.  Peleg  Bearse  was 
round  here  yesterday  peddlin'  fish  and  you  know  as  well 
as  I  do,  Sarepta,  that  Peleg  boards  to  the  Mansion 
House  just  the  same  as  Mr.  Clifford  did.  And  Peleg 
he  says  Mr.  Clifford's  gone  to  Omaha  to  work  on 
some  kind  of  a  sawmill  engyne  or  somethin'.  I  think 
'twas  a  sawmill  engyne  he  said;  anyhow  I  know  'twas 
Omaha." 

"Well,  all's  I  know  is  that  'Lindy  Doane  told  me 
he'd  gone  to  Saint  Louis  to  help  put  up  machines  for 
16  235 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

makin'  ice,  or  rice,  or  somethin'.     Hello!     Who's  that 
comin'  down  the  road?" 

It  was  Captain  Noah  in  his  little  car,  a  fact  which 
Mrs.  Ginn,  running  to  the  window,  proclaimed  the  next 
moment. 

"He'll  know,"  she  cried.  "Him  and  the  Clifford  man 
was  great  chums.  He'll  know  where  he's  gone." 

She  ran  to  the  front  door,  followed  by  Miss  Hatch. 

"Cap'n  Newcomb !"  she  screamed.  "Cap'n  New- 
comb  !" 

The  captain,  who  had  already  gotten  a  short  dis 
tance  past  the  house,  heard  the  hail  and  turned.  When 
he  saw  the  two  ladies  standing  in  the  Ginn  doorway 
he  slowed  down  the  car,  but  did  not  stop.  His  sojourn 
in  Trumet  had  not  been  a  long  one,  but  it  had  been 
long  enough  to  make  him  wary  of  Sarepta  and  El 
vira. 

"What  is  it?"  he  shouted. 

"We  want  to  ask  you  somethin*,"  screamed  Mrs.  Ginn. 
"Where's  Irvin'  Clifford  gone  to?" 

The  car  rolled  slowly  on.  Captain  Noah  looked  back 
over  his  shoulder. 

"Eh?"  he  cried  again. 

Miss  Hatch  raised  her  voice.  It  was  no  shriller  than 
Elvira's,  but  she  prided  herself  on  its  carrying  power. 

"Where's  Irvin'  Clifford  gone  to?"  she  screamed. 

The  captain  took  his  left  hand  from  the  wheel,  made 
a  speaking  trumpet  of  his  fist,  and  shouted  through  it. 

"He's — gone — away,"  he  shouted.  Then  he  put  on 
speed  and  the  little  car  shot  down  Knowles'  Hill.  Mrs. 
Ginn  and  Miss  Hatch  returned  to  the  house,  where 

236 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

for  twenty  minutes  they  discussed  the  doings  of  their 
fellow  townspeople,  male  and  female,  paying  particular 
attention  to  Miss  Mary  Barstow,  Mr.  Calvin  Went- 
worth  and  Mr.  Irving  Clifford.  They  agreed  that  Mr. 
Clifford's  sudden  departure  looked  very  suspicious,  as 
if  he  had  received  his  dismissal  from  the  young  lady; 
also  that  Mr.  Wentworth's  more  and  more  frequent 
calls,  coupled  with  the  auto  rides,  ice-cream  treats  and 
the  like,  were  very  significant. 

"If  it's  so — I  mean  if  anything  comes  of  it,"  declared 
Sarepta,  "she  can  call  herself  mighty  lucky,  that's  all 
I've  got  to  say." 

It  was  not  all  she  had  to  say,  by  a  good  deal,  for  she 
went  on  to  dilate  upon  Mr.  Calvin  Wentworth's  good 
points  fluently  and  at  length.  "He's  so  polite/'  she  said, 
"and  so — so  sort  of  superior  and  genteel.  Anybody  can 
see  he's  a  gentleman.  Course  Irvin'  Clifford  was  polite 
enough,  far's  that  goes,  but " 

"But,"  put  in  her  friend,  "there's  a  difference  be 
tween  buildin'  cold-storage  houses  to  freeze  fish  inta 
and  bein'  so  rich  you  don't  have  to  pump  water  to  wash 
your  hands.  No ;  what  Mr.  Wentworth  can  see  in  Mary 
Barstow  the  dear  land  knows,  but  if  she  gets  him  she'll 
be  a  lucky  girl,  as  you  say,  Sarepta.  But  how  will 
Balaam  take  it,  I  wonder  ?" 

A  good  many  people  wondered  that  very  thing  dur 
ing  the  next  few  weeks.  Mr.  Griggs'  prejudice  against 
marriage,  when  it  involved  his  stepdaughter,  was  known 
from  one  end  of  Trumet  to  the  other.  The  Hatch-Ginn 
conversation  was  but  one  of  many  similar  discussions. 
Had  there  been  a  quarrel  between  Clifford  and  Miss 

237 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

Barstow  ?  Was  the  said  quarrel  the  reason  for  the  engi 
neer's  sudden  departure  for  Omaha,  or  Saint  Louis,  or 
Salt  Lake  City,  or  Jericho,  or  Jerusalem — or  wherever 
he  had  gone?  And  was  Mr.  Calvin  Wentworth  a  can 
didate  for  the  vacant  place  in  the  young  lady's  affec 
tions  ?  And  how,  provided  he  was  such  a  candidate,  and 
a  successful  one,  would  stepfather  Balaam  accept  the 
new  development?  These  were  Trumet's  questions. 

Clifford,  although  by  no  means  unpopular  in  the  vil 
lage,  had  made  no  especial  effort  to  achieve  popularity. 
Nor  had  public  curiosity  at  any  time  centered  upon  him 
as  it  had  upon  the  mysterious  and  romantic  invalid, 
Mr.  Calvin  Wentworth.  Everyone  in  town  knew  of  Mr. 
Wentworth's  "debilitated"  health,  of  his  wealth — reputed 
to  be  a  million  at  least — of  his  Fifth  Avenue  clothes 
and  his  highly  genteel  manners.  Cousin  Calvin  was 
languidly  polite  and  chatty  with  the  Trumet  fair  sex, 
old  and  young.  With  its  males  he  was  condescendingly 
familiar.  Mr.  David  Weeks,  the  village  lawyer  and 
director  in  the  Harniss  Bank,  found  it  enjoyable  and 
flattering  to  be  consulted  by  the  former  frequenter  of 
Wall  Street  concerning  which  stocks  might  be  consid 
ered  "good  buys"  at  present.  And  Hannibal  Thayer,  who 
kept  the  billiard  and  pool  parlor,  liked  to  have  Mr. 
Wentworth  drop  in,  casually,  to  try  a  few  fancy  carom 
shots  on  the  newest  table.  The  prevailing  opinion  was 
that  the  ex-New  Yorker  was  "a  real  swell  and  perfect 
gentleman,  but  not  a  mite  stuck-up." 

So  the  majority  of  Trumet  was  inclined  to  believe 
that,  provided  the  affair  ever  reached  the  point  where 
marriage  was  seriously  considered  by  Calvin  and  Mary, 

238 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

Mr.  Griggs  would  not  permit  his  long-cherished  and 
deep-rooted  prejudice  to  stand  in  the  way. 

"It's  one  thing."  declared  Ethelinda,  standing,  dish- 
towel  in  hand,  gazing  out  of  the  Mansion  House  win 
dow.  "It's  one  thing  to  be  down  on  her  niarryin'  the 
common  run  of  everyday  Cape  Codder,  like  them  that's 
been  tryin'  to  get  her  and  she  wouldn't  look  at,  let 
alone  Mr.  Griggs.  And  it's  the  same  one  thing — or — 
or  next  door  to  it — although  after  all,  it  is  a  different 
thing,  ain't  it,  Mis'  Hobbs,  to  be  down  on  her  marryin' 
even  a  nice  young  cold-storage  man  like  Mr.  Clifford. 
But  when  it  comes  to  heavin'  out  objections  to  her  tak- 
in'  up  with  a  perfect  millionaire  nobleman  like  Mr. 
Wentworth — well,  that  would  be  another  thing,  wouldn't 
it,  Mis'  Hobbs?" 

Mrs.  Hobbs,  looking  across  the  road  where  the  "mil 
lionaire  nobleman,"  leaning  nonchalantly  against  a  post, 
watched  Sport  chase  a  neighbor's  cat  up  a  tree — that 
is,  the  cat  went  up  the  tree  while  Sport  fretted  and 
pawed  below — Mrs.  Hobbs,  watching  the  easy  grace  and 
perfect  poise  of  the  gentleman,  sighed.  Cousin  Calvin 
had  a  habit  of  dropping  in  at  the  Mansion  House  occa 
sionally,  where  he  sat  and  smoked  on  the  veranda  and 
chatted  affably  with  Mr.  Bearse  and  Uncle  Labe  or 
herself.  Captain  Penniman  seldom  took  part  in  these 
conversations.  The  captain  had  the  bad  taste  not  to 
like  Mr.  Wentworth,  referred  to  him  contemptuously  as 
a  *  'darned  dude." 

"That  would  be  another  thing,  wouldn't  it,  Mis' 
Hobbs  ?"  repeated  Ethelinda. 

"What  would  be?" 

239 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

"Why,  what  I  said.  I  said  her  marryin'  Mr.  Clif 
ford  would  be  one  thing  and  Mr.  Wentworth's  mar 
rying  her  would  be  another  thing.  And  for  Mr.  Griggs 
to  be  set  against  her  marryin'  Mr.  Clifford  would  be 
a  different  thing  from  his  bein*  set — I  mean  her  bein' 
set — against  her  marryin'  him — I  mean  him  marryin' 
her — Mr.  Griggs,  I  mean." 

"Who  marryin'  Mr.  Griggs?  What  are  you  talkin' 
about,  'Linda?" 

"Nobody.  Why,  what  an  idea !  I  guess  nobody'd  want 
to  marry  old  Balaam.  It  was  Mr.  Wentworth  I  was  talk- 
in'  about.  I  do  think  he's  just  too  lovely !  Don't  you, 
Mis'  Hobbs?" 

"Sshh !     Don't  talk  silly,  'Linda." 

"That  ain't  silly,  it's  sense.  I  think  he's  too  good  for 
her,  don't  you,  Mis'  Hobbs?" 

"Nonsense,  'Linda,"  rather  sharply.  "You  mustn't 
make  such  remarks.  Very  likely  he  hasn't  the  slightest 
idea  of  marryin'  her.  Probably  he  is  just  friendly,  as 
he  is  with — with  us,  for  instance." 

'Well,  maybe  so,  but —  Oh,  there  she  comes  now! 
Look!  look,  Mis'  Hobbs!  See!  There  she  comes  now. 
Now  we'll  see  how  they  act  together." 

Miss  Barstow  came  down  the  street,  evidently  on  a 
shopping  expedition.  Mr.  Wentworth  saw  her,  pushed 
himself  away  from  the  supporting  post,  raised  his  hat 
and  stepped  forward.  The  young  lady  saw  him  and 
appeared  to  hesitate.  Ethelinda  noticed  the  hesitation. 

"Humph !"  she  sniffed.  "She  don't  act  so  terrible  glad 
to  see  him,  does  she  now?  Maybe  there  ain't  nothin' 
in  it,  after  all.  Hello!  ain't  that  Mr.  Balaam  Griggs 

240 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

standin'  in  the  door  of  the  barber  shop  over  there? 
Yes,  'tis,  I  snum  if  it  ain't !  Don't  he  look  sort  of  ugly 
to  you,  Mis'  Hobbs?" 

It  was  Balaam,  sure  enough,  and  he  looked  anything 
but  pleased.  His  stepdaughter  saw  him,  caught  his  eye 
— and  no  longer  hesitated.  She  turned,  smiling,  toward 
the  advancing  Wentworth. 

"Why,  how  do  you  do?"  she  said.  "This  is  a  sur 
prise.  Isn't  it  a  beautiful  afternoon  ?" 

Mr.  Wentworth  admitted  the  beauty  of  the  afternoon 
and,  whistling  to  Sport,  sauntered  on  by  the  young  lady's 
side.  Mr.  Griggs  stepped  from  the  barber's  doorway. 

"Say,  Mary,"  he  hailed. 

Mary  turned.  "Oh,  it  is  you,"  she  said.  "Well,  what 
is  it  ?" 

Balaam  did  not  seem  to  know  exactly  what  it  was, 
at  all  events  he  seemed  to  find  it  difficult  to  speak. 

"Yes,  Mr.  Griggs?"  repeated  the  young  lady,  sweetly. 
"What  was  it  you  wanted?" 

"Why — er — why — er — "  stammered  Balaam;  "I  was 
just  wonderin*  where  you  were  goin',  that's  all." 

"Oh,  I'm  just  going  to  do  a  few  errands.  At  La- 
throp's  and  Snow's.  Then  I  may  take  a  walk,  it  is  such 
a  beautiful  day." 

Mr.  Griggs  scratched  his  chin.  "Umph !"  he  grunt 
ed.  "Well,  maybe  I'll  go  with  you." 

His  stepdaughter  seemed  surprised. 

"You?"  she  cried.  "Why,  Mr.  Griggs,  you  scarcely 
ever  take  a  walk — a  long  walk." 

"Um-hm,  I  know.  But  maybe  'twill  do  me  good. 
Come  ahead." 

241 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

Miss  Barstow  shook  her  head. 

"I  am  so  sorry,"  she  said.  "If  I  had  only  known. 
But,  you  see,  Mr.  Wentworth  here " 

"How  do,  Griggs,"  observed  Cousin  Calvin,  casually. 

"Mr.  Wentworth  has  asked  me  to  go  with  him.  It 
was  he  that  suggested  the  walk.  You  won't  mind,  will 
you  ?  Another  time,  you  know.  Or  you  might  walk  by 
yourself.  Good-by." 

They  strolled  on  together  around  the  corner  and  out 
of  sight.  Balaam  swore  aloud.  The  barber  came  out 
of  his  shop. 

"Say,  Balaam,"  he  observed,  grinning.  "What's  hap- 
penin'  there?"  with  a  jerk  of  his  head  toward  the  de 
parting  couple.  "Young  Clifford's  bein'  cut  out,  ain't 
he?  Say,  first  thing  you  know  you'll  have  a  son-in-law 
whether  you  want  one  or  not.  Eh  ?  How  about  that  ?" 

Mr.  Griggs  turned  and  snarled  at  the  speaker  as 
Sport  had  snarled  at  the  cat. 

"'You  mind  your  own  dum  business,"  he  ordered.  Then 
he  strode  off  in  the  opposite  direction  from  that  taken  by 
Mary  and  Mr.  Wentworth. 

If,  instead,  he  had  followed  them  he  might  have  no 
ticed  that  the  "walk"  did  not  materialize.  Apparently 
Mary  changed  her  mind.  In  fact,  after  rounding  the  cor 
ner,  where  her  stepfather  could  no  longer  see  them,  her 
manner  toward  her  escort  was  by  no  means  as  cordial 
and  intimate.  And  when,  as  they  came  out  of  Snow's 
"general  store,"  Captain  Newcomb  drew  tip  to  the  curb 
in  his  little  car,  she  promptly  accepted  his  invitation  to 
ride  home  and  whizzed  away,  leaving  the  "millionaire 
nobleman"  to  walk  by  himself  if  he  chose. 

242 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

That  evening  Mr.  Griggs  was  obliged  to  attend  an 
other  lodge  meeting,  but  he  made  it  a  point  to  leave 
early.  He  reached  his  house  about  nine  o'clock  and, 
before  opening  the  door,  peeped  in  under  the  sitting 
room  curtain.  What  he  saw  made  him  grind  his  teeth. 
Mr.  Wentworth  was  there,  seated  in  the  most  com 
fortable  rocker ;  Mary  was  with  him  and  they  were  chat 
ting  familiarly  and  pleasantly. 

Balaam  entered  softly  and,  tiptoeing  in,  stood  silently 
in  the  doorway  of  the  sitting  room  regarding  the  pair. 
There  was  a  mirror  upon  the  wall  opposite  the  door 
way  and  it  is  just  possible  that  Miss  Barstow  looked 
at  it.  At  any  rate  her  manner  toward  Mr.  Wentworth 
became  even  more  confidential  and  pleasant. 

"Oh,  yes,  Calvin,"  she  said.  Then,  with  a  coquettish 
little  laugh,  she  added,  "I  am  calling  you  Calvin  be 
cause  you  asked  me  to,  you  know.  And,  after  all, 
somehow  it  does  seem  as  if  we  were  old  friends,  doesn't 
it?" 

Mr.  Wentworth  smiled.  "Indeed  it  does,"  he  said. 
"And  may  I  call  you  Mary?  Now  that  we  are  old 
friends,  of  course.  Mary,"  he  repeated,  softly.  "The 
dear  old-fashioned  names,  how  I  love  them." 

Mr.  Griggs  could  contain  his  feelings  no  longer.  They 
expressed  themselves  in  an  explosion  which  was  a  com 
bination  groan,  grunt  and  snort.  Both  Miss  Barstow 
and  her  visitor  startled  and  turned. 

"Oh,"  cried  the  young-  lady.  "What  was  that?  Oh, 
it  is  you!"  with  a  sigh  of  relief.  Then  she  asked,  "Why 
— why,  when  did  you  come  in?" 

It  seemed  to  Balaam  that  she  appeared  embarrassed 

243 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

as  well  as  startled.  The  lamplight  in  the  room  was 
rather  dim,  so  he  could  not  see  whether  or  not  she 
changed  color.  But  he  was  willing  to  believe  that  she 
did ;  at  all  events  if  she  did  not  he  was  sure  she  should. 
He  glowered  at  her  angrily. 

"Evening,  Griggs,"  observed  Mr.  Wentworth.  "How 
was  the  gathering  of  the  Grand  Exalted  Brethren  of 
the  Double  Cross  this  evening?  How  many  new  victims 
did  you  hot-foot  over  the  blistering  sands  this  time?" 

Balaam  transferred  the  glower  from  his  stepdaughter 
to  her  caller. 

"I  don't  know  what  you're  talkin'  about,"  he  growled. 
"I've  been  to  the  Red  Men's  meetin'." 

"Woof,  woof!  Big  Injun!"  remarked  Cousin  Calvin, 
the  imperturbable.  There  was  no  embarrassment  on  his 
part,  not  the  slightest. 

"But,  Mr.  Griggs,  why  did  you  come  in  so  quietly?" 
asked  Mary.  "I'm  sure  I  didn't  hear  you  open  the 
door,  and  I  think  Mr.  Wentworth  did  not?" 

"Not  a  sound,"  affirmed  the  gentleman.  "He  came 
in  with  the  catlike  tread  of  the  untutored  child  of  the 
forest.  He  has  been  on  the  warnath  tonight,  Mary. 
The  noble  red  man  has  buckled  on  his  tomahawk.  Let 
the  pale  face  tremble  for  his  scalp." 

Mary  laughed  merrily.  Her  stepfather  did  not  even 
smile. 

"  'Tain't  no  wonder  you  didn't  hear  me  come  in,"  he 
said.  "You  was  too  sociable  for  that." 

Mary  looked  in  puzzled  fashion  from  him  to  Mr. 
Wentworth. 

"What  does  he  mean?"  she  inquired,  addressing  the 

244 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

latter.  "Sociable  ?  Why  shouldn't  we  be  sociable  ?  We 
are  not  enemies,  are  we  ?" 

Mr.  Griggs  laughed.  "Oh,  no !"  he  exclaimed,  loud 
ly.  "No,  no,  you  ain't  enemies.  Anybody  could  see 
that.  No,  no !  Enemies !  that's  a  good  one." 

Cousin  Calvin  shook  his  head.  "The  child  of  the  for 
est  has  been  scorched  by  the  firewater,  I  should  say," 
he  observed.  "That  is,  I  should  say  if  I  didn't  know 
what  a  moral  person  he  was.  Your  stepfather  and  I, 
Mary,"  he  went  on,  "had  a  discussion  concerning  mor 
als  during  our  motor  ride  a  week  or  two  ago.  I  was 
much  impressed.  Mr.  Griggs  is  a  highly  moral  man — 
in  spots,"  he  added,  with  a  chuckle. 

Balaam  may  have  felt  that  the  subject  of  that  motor 
ride  was  not  one  to  be  discussed  in  his  stepdaughter's 
company.  Or  it  may  have  dawned  upon  him  that  he 
was  not  likely  to  have  the  last  of  it  in  a  game  of  repar 
tee  with  Mr.  Calvin  Wentworth.  At  any  rate,  his  next 
remark  dealt  with  another  subject.  He  drew  forth  his 
watch  and  looked  at  it. 

"What!"  he  exclaimed,  with  great  and  most  obvious 
astonishment,  "almost  ten  o'clock !  Well,  I  swan  to 
man !  Who'd  have  thought  it  was  as  late  as  that  ?" 

Mary  rose  to  her  feet.  "Ten  o'clock!"  she  repeated. 
"Why,  I  can  scarcely  believe  it." 

Cousin  Calvin  looked  at  his  own  watch. 

"No  wonder  you  can't  believe  it,"  he  said.  "It  will 
be  ten  o'clock  in  exactly  twenty-seven  minutes.  Mr. 
Griggs'  watch  is  running  with  the  throttle  open,  I  should 
imagine." 

Balaam  shook  his  timepiece  and  held  it  to  his  ear. 

245 


EXTRICATING  OBAD1AH* 

"She's  runnin'  fine,"  he  declared.  "That  watch  of  yours 
is  slow,  Mr.  Wentworth.  It's  a  New  York  watch,  I 
judge,  and  it  ain't  got  acclimationed  yet." 

"Accli-— which  ?" 

"Acclimationed — used  to  the  climate  we  have  down 
here.  When  it  gets  that  way  it'll  run  smoother,  same 
as  mine." 

Before  the  owner  of  the  New  York  watch  could 
speak  again  in  its  defense,  Miss  Barstow  put  in  a  word. 

"Well,  it  is  nearly  ten,  at  all  events,"  she  said,  "and 
I  think,  if  you  gentlemen  will  excuse  me,  I  will  leave 
you  now.  I  am  rather  tired  and — "  She  hesitated,  and 
then  with  a  twinkle  in  her  eye,  added,  "I  have  a  letter 
to  write  before  I  go  to  bed." 

Mr.  Wentworth  looked  disappointed. 

"Oh,   don't   go — yet,"   he   protested. 

"Who  are  you  writin'  letters  to?"  demanded  Balaam, 
suspiciously. 

Mary  smiled  and  shook  her  head  at  him. 

"You  are  so  forgetful,"  she  said.  "Didn't  you  ask 
me  to  write  to  that  man  in  Boston  about  the  land  he 
was  looking  at?"  Then  turning  to  Wentworth  she 
added:  "Really  I  must  go.  As  I  said  I  am  rather  tired, 
and,  besides,  I  am  sure  you  and  Mr.  Griggs  have  many 
things  to  talk  about.  Good  night,  Mr.  Griggs.  Good 
night — er — Calvin." 

She  gave  the  couple  in  the  sitting  room  one  final 
glance  and  then,  with  the  twinkle  in  her  eyes  more 
pronounced  than  ever,  hurried  out  and  up  the  stairs. 
Mr.  Griggs  looked  after  her  and  then,  tiptoeing  over, 

246 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

quietily  closed  the  door.  Cousin  Calvin  watched  the  door- 
shutting  with  a  languid  smile. 

"Why  the  deep  secrecy,  Uncle?"  he  inquired. 

Balaam  came  back  to  the  chair  Mary  had  just  va 
cated  and  sat  down  upon  it.  He  did  not  answer  his 
visitor's  question,  but  instead  asked  one  of  his  own. 

"Say,"  he  demanded,  sullenly,  "what  are  you  up  to, 
anyway  ?" 

Mr.  Wentworth's  smile  broadened.  "Well,  Uncle," 
he  began. 

"I  told  you  once  I  wasn't  your  uncle/'  broke  in 
Balaam,  pettishly.  "I  don't  see  as  you've  got  no  call 
to  call  me  out  of  my  name." 

"So?  Tastes  differ,  that's  a  fact.  If  I  had  a  name 
like  yours  I'd  much  rather  be  called  out  of  it  than  in 
it.  Let's  see,  what  is  your  name?  Jeremiah?  Nebu 
chadnezzar?  Jonah?  Why,  of  course,  that's  it — Jonah." 

Mr.  Griggs  frowned.  "No,  'tain't  Jonah  neither,"  he 
snapped.  "And  you  know  it  well's  I  do.  Look  here, 
I  don't  care  for  any  of  your  funny  talk  just  now.  I 
don't  feel  like  laughin'.  What  I  want  you  to  do  is  to 
tell  me  what  you're  up  to?" 

"Up  to?  Well,  Uncle— Beg  pardon— Well,  Jonah- 
Pardon  again — Well — er — Rain-in-the-Face,  Chief  of 
the  Wampanoags " 

"What  in  time  ?  " 

"What  is  your  Indian  name,  Uncle?  What  do  they 
call  you  around  the  camp  fire  up  at  the  'taown  hall'? 
Eh?" 

"Look  here!  I  don't  want  no  funny  talk,  I  tell  you. 
You  come  here  to  my  house  and  everybody  says  you're 

247 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

callin'  on  my  stepdaughter.  You've  took  her  out  rid- 
in'  in  Newcomb's  car — all  hands  seen  you.  You  buy  ice 
cream  for  her,  and  more'n  once,  too.  This  very  after 
noon  you  and  she  went  walkin'  together  right  down  the 
main  road.  More'n  five  million  folks  have  been  heavin* 
out  hints  about  your  cuttin'  out  Irve  Clifford  and  keep- 
in'  company  along  with  Mary.  I'm  sick  of  it,  I  be. 
Now  what  do  you  mean  by  it  ?  I  ask  you  again :  What 
are  you  up  to?" 

Cousin  Calvin  took  a  silver  case  from  his  pocket  and 
selected  and  lighted  a  cigarette. 

"Join  me?"  he  asked,  proffering  the  case  to  Griggs. 
"No?  Too  effeminate  for  the  lips  of  a  warrior,  I  imag 
ine.  Only  squaws  should  smoke  such  things.  Righto, 
Sitting  Bull.  But  you  don't  mind  if  I  do?  Good." 
He  crossed  his  legs,  leaned  back  in  his  chair,  took  a 
puff  or  two  and  then  said: 

"What  am  I  up  to?  Well,  Uncle,  I  have  heard  it 
said  that  I  was  pretty  nearly  up  to  the  minute.  Of 
course  I  am  too  modest  to  say  as  much  myself,  but — " 
He  languidly  waved  the  cigarette  and  beamed  upon  his 
companion. 

Balaam's  teeth  snapped  together  and  he  struck  the 
arm  of  his  chair  with  his  fist. 

"Say,"  he  growled,  "this  thing's  got  to  stop,  do  you 
hear?" 

"Bless  me!     Is  it  possible?     What  thing?" 

"You  know  what  well  as  I  do.  This  thing  of  your 
carryin*  on  with  my  stepdaughter  and — and  sittin*  up 
with  her — and  buyin'  ice-cream  for  her  and " 

Mr.  Wentworth  laughed.    "The  ice-cream  portion  has 

248 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

already  stopped,"  he  observed.  "Twice  she  and  I  have 
eaten  the  frozen  cornstarch  and  glucose  they  prescribe 
at  the  local  drug  store  and  it  is  sufficient,  quite.  Not 
any — no  more — thank  you  kindly — a  genteel  suffi 
ciency." 

Mr.  Griggs  grunted.  "Yes,  and  all  the  rest  of  it's 
got  to  stop,  too.  Why,  the  whole  town's  sayin'  now — 
Do  you  know  what  they're  sayin'?  Eh,  do  you?" 

"Sorry,  old  scout,  but  I  do  not." 

"They're  sayin'  you  are  goin'  to  marry  her,  now." 

Cousin  Calvin  blew  a  ring  of  smoke,  watched  it  ex 
pand  and  widen,  and  then  deftly  blew  another  through 
it. 

"How  do  you  know  I'm  not?"  he  asked,  gently. 

Balaam's  jaw  fell  and  his  eyee  opened. 

"How  do  I  know?"  he  gasped.  "How  do  I—  Why 
— why,  you " 

"There!  there!  Don't  explode.  Yes,  how  do  you 
know?  Mary  seems  to —  Well,  she  doesn't  spurn  my 
society,  exactly.  In  fact,"  with  a  slight  smirk  of  self- 
satisfaction,  "she  actually  appears  to — er — like  it.  She's 
a  pretty  girl,  a  mighty  pretty  girl.  She  would  make  a 
very  creditable  wife  for  any  man.  Perhaps  I  am  plan 
ning  to  marry  her.  Why  shouldn't  I  ?" 

Mr.  Griggs  bounced  from  his  chair.  His  face  was 
flaming  red  and  his  fists  clenched. 

"Why  shouldn't  you?"  he  repeated.  "Why  shouldn't 
you  ?  I'll  tell  you  why  you  shouldn't.  'Cause  I  say  no, 
that's  why." 

"Is  that  all?" 

"All?  Ain't  it  enough?  Didn't  I  tell  you  I  wouldn't 
249 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

have  her  marry  ?  Didn't  you  and  me  talk  that  over  go- 
in'  to  Ostable  and  back?  Ain't  we  talked  it  over  a 
dozen  times  since?  Wasn't  it  your  scheme  that  got 
rid  of  Irve  Clifford?  Eh,  wasn't  it?" 

Mr.  Wentworth  did  not  affirm  or  deny.  He  merely 
smiled,  and  upon  Balaam  Griggs  watching  that  smile 
a  great  light  suddenly  burst. 

"Eh?"  cried  Balaam.  "Eh?  by  godfrey's  domino,  I 
believe —  Did  you  help  me  get  rid  of  him  so  you  could 
— so  you  could  get  her  yourself?  Did  you?" 

His  visitor  laughed  quietly.    Griggs  swore  aloud. 

"Well,  you  won't  get  her,"  he  declared,  savagely. 
"Indeed  and  indeed  you  won't." 

"Won't  I?    Dear  me!" 

"I  guess  'twill  be  dear  me.  Why,  you  dum  idiot,  do 
you  cal'late  I'll  have  her  marryin'  you  any  more'n  I 
would  him?  I  guess  not." 

Cousin  Calvin  tossed  the  stump  of  his  cigarette  into  the 
flower  pot  on  the  window  sill. 

"Aren't  you  rather  loose  in  your  reasoning,  Griggs?" 
he  asked.  "Excuse  my  mentioning  it,  but  has  it  oc 
curred  to  you  that  Clifford  is — er — one  sort  of  person 
and  I  another?" 

The  effect  of  this  speech  upon  Mr.  Griggs  was  some 
what  surprising.  Instead  of  awing  and  impressing  him 
it  seemed  to  do  the  exact  opposite.  He  laughed  loudly 
and  sarcastically. 

"Haw,  haw!"  he  roared.  "You're  another  all  right. 
I  cal'late  that's  so,  sure  enough.  Irve  Clifford  is  earn- 
in'  good  wages,  or  all  hands  say  he  is,  and  you — you, 
by  time,  you  ain't  earnin'  nothin'." 

250 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

•'Possibly  I  don't  need  to,  Uncle." 

"Um — hm,  possibly  you  don't.  Long's  Obe  Burgess  is 
fool  enough  to  eat  you  and  sleep  you,  and  him  and  Noah 
Newcomb  to  lend  you  money,  I  don't  know's  you  do 
need  to  work.  But  they  don't  know  and  I  do."  With 
a  significant  nod,  "/  do" 

Wentworth  looked  at  him  keenly. 

"What  do  you  mean  by  that?"  he  asked.  "What  do 
you  know?" 

"I  know  about  you.  I've  been  kind  of  suspicious 
ever  since  you  borrored  that  forty  dollars  off  Obe  six 
weeks  ago  when  your  dividend  check  didn't  come.  Haw, 
haw!  a  mighty  good  reason  why  it  never  come.  Wait- 
in'  for  it  yet,  I  cal'late,  ain't  you?  Yes,  and  I  cal'late 
you're  liable  to  be  for  one  spell.  Dividend  check! 
Haw,  haw!" 

"What  do  you  know?"  demanded  Wentworth, 
sharply. 

"I  know  all  about  you,  my  fine  feller,  how  much 
you're  worth  and  all.  I  know  how  much  Obe  is  liable 
to  get  when  you  die.  Huh!  I  bet  I  do.  I  got  sus 
picious,  same  as  I  said " 

"Figured  that  I  might  be  asking  you  for  a  loan,  I 
suppose." 

"What  if  I  did?  Stranger  things  than  that  might 
happen.  I've  got  it  to  loan,  if  I  want  to,  I  guess." 

"I  guess  you  have.  I  never  heard  that  you  lent  any, 
except  on  a  mortgage,  but  perhaps  I  don't  realize  how 
openhanded  you  are.  They  call  you  a  tightwad  down 
here,  Uncle,  but  probably  they're  wrong.  I  was  just 
thinking  that  I  might  ask  you  to  help  me  out  a  bit  finan- 

17  251 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

cially — just  till  those  dividend  checks  come  in,  you  know/* 

"You  was?    You  was,  eh?    Well,  young  feller " 

"Thanks  for  the  compliment." 

"Shut  up!  I'm  goin'  to  tell  you  what  I  done  when  I 
got  suspicious  of  you.  I've  got  a  friend  who  keeps  store 
over  to  Bayport  and  he  subscribes  to  Bradstreets'.  I 
asked  him  to  have  your  standin'  looked  up  and  he 
done  it.  I  got  the  Bradstreets'  folks'  answer  from  him 
a  couple  of  days  ago.  Ah,  ha !  Ah,  ha !  I  thought  that 
might  make  you  look  kind  of  sick.' 

The  thought  was  erroneous.  Instead  of  looking  sick, 
Mr.  Wentworth,  after  a  momentary  pause,  burst  into 
a  hearty  laugh.  Balaam,  who  was  not  expecting  laugh 
ter,  stared  at  him  in  utter  amazement. 

"Ha,  ha!"  laughed  Cousin  Calvin.  "Looked  me  up 
in  Bradstreets',  eh?  Well  done,  old  scout!  Bully  for 
you !" 

"Bully  for  me?    Be  you  crazy?" 

"Not  a  bit.  Neither  are  you.  You're  as  sharp  as  you 
are  reported  to  be.  So  you  looked  me  up,  eh?  I 
wouldn't  have  believed  anyone  in  this  burg  had  so  much 
business  sense.  And  what  did  you  find?" 

"I  found  out  what  you  was  worth — or  what  you 
wan't  worth,  and  that  comes  to  the  same  thing.  Oh, 
you  needn't  look  scared,  I  shan't  say  nothin'  to  Obe 
Burgess  nor  Newcomb  nor  the  rest " 

"I  know  you  won't." 

"Is  that  so!  I  want  to  know!  Well,  you  better  let 
me  finish.  I  shan't  say  nothin'  about  what  I've  found 
out  to  them  fellers  nor  nobody  else,  partly  because  'tain't 

252 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

none  of  their  business,  and  partly  because  I  don't  want 
to  be  too  hard  on  you " 

"Thanks,  awfully." 

"Be  still,  I  tell  you.  I  shan't  say  it  to  them  if — if, 
mind  you — you  stop  callin'  on  my  daughter  or  seein'  her 
or  havin'  anything  to  do  with  her.  Just  drop  her  right 
off  this  minute  and  I  keep  mum — otherwise  No." 

He  thumped  the  table  to  emphasize  the  "No." 
Cousin  Calvin  leaned  back  in  his  chair,  put  his  hands 
in  his  trousers'  pockets  and  whistled  softly. 

"Sorry,  Uncle,"  he  said,  quietly,  "but  it  can't  be 
done."  " 

"Can't  be  done?     What  can't?" 

"The  'dropping  Mary'  game,  not  on  those  terms  it 
can't.  She's  a  nice  girl,  I  like  her.  As  to  marrying  her 
— well,  I  haven't  made  up  my  mind  about  that  yet, 
but " 

"Ain't  made  up  your  mind  ?  Well,  I've  made  up  mine. 
You — you,  struttin'  round  playin'  the  millionaire,  when 
you're  only  a  good-for-nothin',  next  door  to  poverty- 
struck,  seedy " 

His  companion  waved  a  protesting  hand.  "Easy,  easy, 
old  scout,"  he  said.  "Let's  let  it  stand  at  'seedy.'  Seedy 
is  a  word  that  interests  me  just  now.  I  am  a  trifle  seedy 
around  the  edges,  I'll  admit ;  I  need  some  new  togs 
and  a  general  touching  up  and  revarnishing.  Suppose 
you  let  me  have — until  the  dividend  checks  show  up,  of 
course — say,  two  hundred  dollars.  With  that  I'll  take 
a  little  flyer  to  New  York  and " 

"I  let  you  have  two  hundred  dollars!  7  let  you  have 
it!  By  godfrey  domino!  you  be  loony.  Here,  you  get 

253 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

out  of  my  house !  Get  right  out !  And  don't  you  let 
me  see  you  nigh  Mary  again." 

"Dear  me!  But  suppose  you  do  see  me  near  her; 
what  then?" 

"Then  I'll  tell  her  how  you  was  the  one  that  sicked 
the  Emmons  woman  onto  Irve  Clifford." 

"If  you   do  then  she  may  send  for   Clifford  again.'* 

"No,  she  won't.  She's  down  on  him  for  keeps.  And 
tellin'  her  ain't  the  only  thing  I'll  do.  I'll  tell  Obe 
Burgess  and  Newcomb  about  the  Bradstreets'  report. 
I'll  tell  it  all  around  town.  I'll  show  you  up,  my  fine 
feller." 

Mr.  Wentworth  smilingly  shook  his  head.  "Oh,  no, 
you  won't,"  he  said. 

"Won't,  eh  ?     I  want  to  know !    Why  won't  I  ?" 

"Because  you  will  be  afraid  to,  Uncle,  dear.  Because 
you  will  know  that  the  minute  I  hear  of  your  telling  any 
one  anything  about  me  I  shall  call  upon  your  Mary 
— our  Mary — and  read  her  this  bit  of  literature." 

He  took  a  folded  paper  from  his  pocket. 

"'But  provided,'"  he  read,  "'my  daughter,  the  said 
Mary  Barton  Barstow,  comes  of  age  or  marries,  the 
said  trust  held  by  her  mother,  my  wife,  and  Balaam 
Griggs,  my  joint  executor,  shall  terminate  and  the  said 
twentyrfive  thousand  dollars  shall  be  hers,  the  said 
Mary  Barton  Barstow's,  without  let  or  hindrance/ 
Neat  little  sentiment,  don't  you  think?  I  copied  it  my 
self  at  the  Probate  Clerk's  office  in  Ostable.  ...  Eh? 
Why,  Uncle,  you  look  ill !  Does  the  child  of  the  forest 
need  his  medicine  man?" 

254 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

Balaam  had  collapsed  into  a  rocking  chair.  He  did 
look  ill,  very  ill,  indeed. 

"No,  old  scout,"  went  on  Cousin  Calvin,  sweetly, 
"you  won't  tell  anyone  anything,  I'm  sure.  And,  pro 
vided  you  behave  like  a  nice  old  dear,  I  won't  tell  any 
one  anything  either.  And  when  you  lend  me  that  two 
hundred,  as  I  can  see  by  your  eyes  you  are  going  to,  I 
will  run  away  to  Broadway  and  be  gone  two  whole  long 
weeks.  Isn't  that  a  pleasant  prospect?  And  perhaps 
during  that  two  weeks  I  shall  decide  not  to  marry  Mary 
at  all.  There,  it's  your  bedtime,  Uncle  dear,  so  I 
must  be  trotting.  So  long,  Jonah.  By-by,  Sitting  Bull. 
Good  night,  old  scout.  I'll  call  tomorrow;  meanwhile 
you  think  it  over.  Good  night." 


CHAPTER   XVI 

CAPTAIN  NOAH  was  getting  rather  anxious  and 
very  impatient.     Another  fortnight  had  passed, 
full  two  weeks  since  he  received  the  first  letter 
from  the  New  York  broker,  and  each  day  of  those  two 
weeks  he  had  gone  to  the  post  office  with  the  hope  of 
finding  a  second  letter,  a  letter  which  should  give  him 
the  information  he  desired  concerning  the  Ostrich  Min 
ing  and  Smelting  Company.     But  each  day  he  had  been 
disappointed — no  letter  came. 

Obadiah  was  getting  anxious  also,  not  because  of  the 
non-arrival  of  the  letter — he  knew  nothing  of  the  New 
York  correspondence — but  because  Captain  Noah  had 
not  as  yet  performed  some  miracle  which  should  either 
get  back  his  five  thousand,  or,  better  still,  prove  that  in 
turning  over  his  capital  under  Mr.  Griggs'  guidance  he 
had  made  a  wise  investment.  The  captain  so  far  had 
done  neither  of  those  things;  in  fact,  he  had  scarcely 
mentioned  the  subject  since  their  momentous  interview 
that  night  at  the  edge  of  the  bluff.  And  each  time  that 
Obadiah  mentioned  it  his  friend  and  mentor  either 
treated  the  affair  as  a  joke  or  bade  him  keep  on  the 

256 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

course  and  say  nothing  until  he  knew  whether  it  was  land 
or  a  fogbank  he  was  headed  for. 

On  the  most  recent  of  these  occasions  the  little  man 
had  ventured  to  protest.  "But,  Cap'n  Noah,"  he  de 
manded,  "how  am  I  goin'  to  n-nun-nun-know  which 
'tis  until  I  can  see?  There  ain't  nothin'  ahead,  not  even 
f-f-fog,  yet." 

"Don't  let  that  worry  you,  Obe,"  observed  the  cap 
tain,  cheerfully.  "There  ain't  anything  astern  but  fog, 
is  there?  So  if  there's  fog  ahead  you're  no  worse  off, 
and  when  you  do  sight  somethin'  solid,  provided  you  do 
sight  it,  'twill  look  all  the  better  to  you." 

Obadiah  looked  puzzled.  "Nothin'  astern  but  fog?" 
he  repeated.  "I  can't  see  what  you  m-m-mean  by  that. 
There  was  twelve  thousand  dollars  astern  of  me  once — 
yes,  and  abreast  of  me,  too.  What's  that  got  to  do  with 

fog?" 

Noah  laughed.  "The  twelve  thousand  wasn't  exactly 
what  I  meant,  Obe,"  he  answered.  "I  meant  your  in 
vestment  in  that  Ostrich  stuff  was  a  sort  of  foggy  trans 
action,  seemed  to  me.  You  took  Balaam's  word  for 
everything  and  set  sail  for  where  he  told  you,  no  matter 
whether  you  could  see  five  fathom  ahead  of  your  jib- 
boom  or  not." 

"Well,  I  don't  see  as  I'm  seein'  further  now,"  ob 
served  Mr.  Burgess,  rather  peevishly.  "I  did  cal'late 
you  was  goin'  to  help  me.  You  said  you  would.  And 
all  you  do  is  talk  about  fog.  I  don't  give  a  d-d-dum 
about  fog.  I  want  to  know  about  my  mon^y.  The  five 
thousand  I  put  in  was  solid  cold  c-c-cash." 

"Sartin.    Ice  is  solid  and  cold  enough,  too,  but  hot  air 

257 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

blowin'  over  it  turns  it  into  fog  right  off.  Same  way 
with  your  cold  cash,  Obe.  Balaam  he  got  his  hot  air 
to  playin'  on  it  and " 

"Aw,  now,  let  up,  won't  ye?  I  don't  feel  f-f -funny 
one  bit.  My  Lord  above!  What'll  I  do?  What'll  I 
do?" 

He  was  wringing  his  hands,  but  the  captain  put  his 
own  big  hand  upon  them.  "There,  there,  Obe,"  he  said, 
kindly,  "what's  this  all  about,  anyway  ?  You  don't  know 
any  more  about  this — er — poultry  investment  of  yours 
than  you  did  at  the  beginning  do  you  ?" 

"No,  course  I  don't.     I " 

"Sshh!  And  you  thought  'twas  a  good  investment 
then,  didn't  you?" 

"Sartin  I  did." 

"Of  course  you  did.  Well,  if  the  last  you  thought 
you  knew  was  somethin'  good  what  are  you  wishin'  for 
— sometHn'  bad?" 

"No,  no,  course  I  ain't.  Tain't  likely  I  be,  is  it?  But 
I  want  to  know  somethin',  and  I  want  to  know  it  pretty 
soon.  If  I  don't  I — I — I  swan  to  man,  Cap'n  Noah,  I 
believe  I'll  go  ravin*  d-d-distracted." 

"No,  no,  you  won't.  Well,  /  want  to  know  somethin', 
too,  Obe ;  you  and  me  are  just  alike  fur's  that  goes.  But 
there's  this  difference  between  us — I'm  workin'  hard  to 
find  out  somethin'.  And  I  cal'late  to  find  out  afore  long. 
You  just  set  still  and  hold  your  hair  on — hold  what 
there  is  left  of  it  on,  at  any  rate.  You  just  wait,  same 
as  I'm  doiiz .  There's  nothin'  to  be  gained  by  frettin'." 

But  in  spite  of  this  philosophical  preachment  the  cap 
tain  did  fret  a  good  deal.  He  more  than  once  sat  down 

258 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

to  write  his  cousin  another  letter,  but  each  time  gave  it 
up.  He  was  asking  a  favor,  and  he  had  no  right  to 
hurry  the  person  asked.  No  doubt  there  was  a  good  rea 
son  why  Mr.  Chase  had  not  written — but,  why  hadn't  he? 

Other  letters  came  regularly  enough.  Of  these  the 
most  recent  from  Chicago  contained  news  which  brought 
a  broad  grin  to  Captain  Noah's  face.  He  made  it  a 
point  to  see  Mary  Barstow  soon  afterward,  and  found 
that  young  lady  in  a  state  of  mind  which,  so  the  captain 
opined,  might  lead  a  well-informed  person  like  himself 
to  infer  that  she,  too,  was  hearing  regularly  from  Chi 
cago.  She  seemed  quietly,  blissfully  happy,  and  said  not 
a  word  concerning  her  recently  expressed  determina 
tion  to  leave  her  stepfather's  home.  In  fact,  she  said 
that  she  would  remain  there,  for  the  present  at  least. 

She  and  Noah  conversed  on  several  subjects  of  mutual 
interest.  Mr.  Calvin  Wentworth's  name  was  among 
those  mentioned;  in  fact,  Cousin  Calvin  was  mentioned 
a  great  many  times. 

"Did  you  know  that  he  was  going  to  New  York?" 
asked  Mary. 

"Coin'  to  New  York?"  repeated  the  captain.  "Who 
is?  Not  Cousin  Calvin?" 

"Yes.  And  he  is  going  soon,  on  the  Saturday  morn 
ing  train,  so  he  told  me." 

Captain  Noah  whistled.  "On  the  train?"  he  repeated. 
"On  the  passenger  train  or  the  freight?" 

"Why,  the  passenger  train,  I  presume.  He  doesn't 
look  like  a  person  who  would  travel  on  the  freight." 

"No,  he  don't,  that's  a  fact.  He's  the  kind  of  critter 
who,  if  he'd  had  a  cabin  passage  on  the  Ark,  would  have 

359 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

kicked  at  bein'  aboard  a  cattle  boat.  No,  he'll  go  fust- 
class  if  he  goes,  I  cal'late.  But  it  costs  money  to  go  to 
New  York — or  it  used  to  when  I  was  goin'  there  reg'lar 
— and  where  does  the  Honorable  get  the  wherewithal? 
That's  what  puzzles  me.  He  ain't  borrowed  any  from 
me  lately,  and  Obadiah  ain't  let  him  have  any,  'cause  I 
warned  him  not  to." 

"Perhaps  he  has  enough  of  his  own.  He  can't  be 
entirely  without  means." 

"He  isn't,  I  cal'late.  You  saw  what  Chase  wrote — 
that  his  dad  left  him  a  good  deal,  but  that  he'd  run 
through  about  everything.  I  imagine  he  has  a  little  in 
come^  just  about  enough  to  buy  him  smokes  and  a  few 
clothes  and  such  down  here,  provided  he  can  live  on  Obe 
and  pay  nothin'  for  room  rent  or  eats.  But  goin'  to 
New  York  is  different.  He  must  have  had  a  windfall 
somewheres.  How  long  is  he  goin'  to  be  gone;  did  he 
say?" 

"A  week  or  so,  I  think  he  said." 

"Humph!  Well,  as  the  old  woman  said  when  her 
grandson  told  her  the  white  rooster  had  laid  an  egg, 
that's  interestin'  if  true.  I  can't  hardly  believe  he's  goin', 
though.  Well,  if  he  should  stay  a  couple  of  weeks  in 
stead  of  one  he  might  be  some  surprised  when  he  got 
back,  eh?" 

Mary  blushed,  smiled,  and  admitted  that  that  was  true. 

"Although  I  haven't  actually  made  up  my  mind  yet," 
she  said. 

"No,  no,  course  you  ain't.  But  I  kind  of  hope  you 
will,  for  it  does  seem  to  me  the  most  sensible — not  to 
say  pleasantest — way  of  settlin'  things.  And  it  will  set- 

260 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

tie  'em,  too,  that's  a  fact.  Ho,  ho!  And  'twill  pretty 
nigh  settle  old —  Humph!  speakin'  of  the  Old  Scratch, 
are  Balaam  and  Calvin  as  thick  as  they  was  there  one 
time?" 

"Mr.  Wentworth  is  here  a  good  deal,"  with  a  mis 
chievous  smile.  "Perhaps  he  might  be  here  more  if — 
if  I  were  more — more  friendly.  But,  oddly  enough,  Mr. 
Griggs  doesn't  seem  to  like  to  have  him  here  now ;  in 
fact,  whenever  I  mention  his  name  he  is  as  cross  as  can 
be.  At  times  he  is  scarcely  civil  to  him,  it  seems  to  me." 

"So?  Well,  probably  he  don't  want  him  trespassin' 
around  you  any  more'n  he  did  Irve.  I  wonder  if  he 
knows  Calvin  read  that  will.  No,  'tain't  likely  he  does. 
The  Honorable  would  be  likely  to  keep  that  quiet  till 
he's  made  sure  of  you.  We'll  see  if  he  does  go  away 
Saturday.  I  can't  scarcely  believe  he  will." 

But  he  did.  Everyone  at  the  Burgess  house  was  sur 
prised  when  on  Friday  he  announced  his  departure  the 
next  morning,  everyone  but  Captain  Noah,  of  course, 
and  he  pretended  to  be.  But,  oddly  enough,  it  was  Joe 
Kenney,  Mrs.  Mayo's  nephew,  who  seemed  the  most  sur 
prised.  Joe  seemed  really  anxious  and  perturbed  about 
it,  and  the  captain,  noticing  this,  asked  the  reason. 

He  and  the  boy  were  together  in  the  yard  that  Sat 
urday  morning,  after  breakfast.  Young  Kenney  was 
working  for  Balaam  Griggs  in  the  afternoon  of  each  day, 
but  the  forenoons  he  was  supposed  to  have  to  himself. 
However,  Balaam  was  quite  as  likely  to  be  over  about 
eleven  loudly  demanding  the  young  fellow  and  intimat 
ing  that  the  latter  was  cheating  him  of  hours  for  which 
he  had  duly  and  liberally  paid.  The  captain  noticed  that, 

261 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAK 

on  such  occasions,  Joe  made  his  appearance,  usually,  from 
the  woodshed.  He  idly  wondered  what  the  boy  found  in 
that  shed  to  keep  him  busy,  but  Joe,  when  questioned, 
seemed  reluctant  to  talk  on  the  subject,  and  his  aunt 
frankly  said  she  did  not  know. 

"He's  up  to  something"  she  said,  during  one  of  her 
conversations  with  Captain  Noah — which  conversations, 
by  the  way,  were  becoming  more  and  more  frequent. 
"He's  up  to  somethin',  some  secret  or  other.  He  don't 
want  to  tell,  I  can  see  that,  and  long's  he  don't  I  ain't 
goin'  to  pry.  I  know  'tain't  anything  bad.  He's  a  good- 
hearted  boy,  Joe  is,  and  he's  all  the  relation  I've  got  in 
the  world.  His  mother  was  my  only  sister,  and  when 
she  died  I  promised  her  I'd  bring  her  son  up  as  if  he  was 
mine.  And  I  have  tried  to,  I  certainly  have.  If  she 
could  have  foreseen " 

She  did  not  finish  that  sentence,  nor  did  she  refer  to 
her  dead  sister  again.  The  captain  idly  wondered  what 
it  might  be  that  the  latter  had  not  foreseen.  Something 
unpleasant,  apparently,  judging  by  the  look  of  distress 
upon  the  housekeeper's  face.  Noah  did  not  like  to  see 
that  look  there,  nor  did  he  like  to  hear  her  sigh.  He  re 
sented  both  look  and  sigh.  Somehow  or  other  he  had 
come  to  feel  a  sort  of  proprietary  interest  in  Melissa 
Mayo,  and  any  trouble  which  she  might  be  in  he  was 
inclined  to  accept  as  a  personal  affroat.  When  she 
sighed  he  felt,  as  he  might  have  expressed  it,  as  if  he 
wanted  to  lick  somebody.  This  was  a  most  absurd  feel 
ing,  of  course,  and  he  probably  would  not  have  admitted 
its  existence,  but  it  did  exist,  nevertheless. 

That  Saturday  morning,  the  morning  of  Mr.  Went- 

262 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

worth's  departure  for  New  York,  Joe  and  the  captain- 
were  in  the  yard  together,  having  finished  breakfast  aj 
the  same  time.  The  captain  was  strolling  leisurely  toward' 
the  front  gate  when  he  heard  his  name  uttered  in  a  soft 
of  shouted  whisper.  Turning,  he  saw  Joe  tiptoeing 
across  the  yard  toward  him.  As  he  looked,  the  boy 
beckoned  with  one  hand  and  flapped  the  other  up  and 
down,  a  pantomime  which  Captain  Noah  accepted  to 
mean  a  desire  for  silence. 

"Well,  Joe,  what  is  it?"  he  inquired. 

Young  Kenney  tiptoed  toward  him.  "Sshh!"  he  said. 
"I — I  just  wanted  to  ask  you  somethin',  Cap'n  Newcomb, 
and  I  didn't  want  Aunt  Melissy  nor  Mr.  Burgess  to  hear, 
that's  all.  Cap'n  Newcomb,"  anxiously,  "do  you  know 
how  long  Mr.  Wentworth's  liable  to  be  gone?  How 
long  he's  figgerin'  to  stay  ?" 

The  captain  shook  his  head.  "Why,  no,  Joe,  I  don't," 
he  replied.  "He  never  said  nothin'  to  me.  However,  I 
understand  he  told  somebody  else  he  was  cal'latin'  to  be 
gone  a  week,  anyhow.  If  he  goer  to  New  York,  as  he 
says  he  is,  he  may  like  it  well  enough  to  stay  a  fortni't, 
'twouldn't  surprise  me  a  mite." 

Joe's  face  fell.  He  looked  much  disappointed.  "And 
today's  the  seventeenth,"  he  said,  more  to  himself  than 
to  his  companion.  "If  he  stays  two  weeks  it  will  come 
while  he's  away.  It's  the  twenty-sixth,  and  that's  a  week 
from  day  after  tomorrer." 

"What  is?"  asked  Noah.  "What's  a  week  from  day 
after  tomorrer,  Joe?" 

"Why,"  absently,  "his  birthday.  Gee!  that'll  be  too 
bad." 

,63 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

"What  will?" 

"Eh?"  Joe  seemed  to  come  out  of  his  trance.  "Oh, 
nothin',  nothing"  he  said,  hastily.  "I  was  just  thinkin' 
of  something  that's  all." 

"So  I  judged.  You  was  thinkin'  of  somethin'  that 
was  nothin',  eh?  Well,  all  right,  Joe,  you  ain't  lone 
some.  A  good  many  folks  in  this  world  think  nothin' 
most  of  the  time." 

He  turned  away,  but  again  the  lad  spoke. 

"Say,  Cap'n  Newcomb,"  he  whispered.  "Say,  Cap'n 
Newcomb." 

"Yes,  Joe.    Overboard  with  it.    What's  troublin'  you  ?" 

Joe  shifted  from  one  foot  to  the  other,  plainly  hesitat 
ing  between  inclination  and  prudence.  Inclination  won. 

"Say,  Cap'n  Newcomb/'  he  said,  "if — if  I  was  to  show 
you  somethin'  would — would  you  promise  not  to  tell  any 
body?" 

"Sure  thing,  Joe.    Give  you  my  word." 

"And  if  I  asked  your  opinion  you'd  tell  me  just  what 
you  thought?" 

"You  bet!  Tellin's  what  I  think  is  one  of  my  strong 
p'ints — or  my  weak  ones." 

"Then — then  you  come  with  me." 

He  led  the  way  and  the  captain  followed,  into  the 
woodshed,  out  of  it  via  the  side  door,  into  the  barn,  into 
the  carriage  room  of  the  barn,  and  then  up  the  ladder 
to  the  empty  loft  over  the  carriage  room.  This  loft  was, 
in  the  days  when  there  was  a  horse  on  the  premises,  a 
storage  place  for  hay.  Now  it  was  a  receptacle  for 
empty  boxes,  crippled  shovels  and  broken  rakes,  a  dis 
carded  bed  spring,  all  sorts  of  odds  and  ends.  There 

264 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

was  a  good-sized  window  at  the  northern  end  of  the 
room,  and  by  it  was  a  chair  without  a  back  ind  an  ob 
viously  homemade  easel.  Upon  the  easel  was  something 
covered  with  one  of  Mrs.  Mayo's  calico  aprons.  Joe 
carefully  closed  the  trapdoor  at  the  head  of  the  ladder  by 
which  they  had  ascended.  Then  he  threw  back  the 
apron. 

"There,  Cap'n  Newcomb !"  he  declared,  his  tone  a  mix 
ture  of  diffidence  and  triumph,  "I've  been  workin'  on  it 
for  pretty  nigh  a  month  now.  What  do  you  think  of  it? 
Pretty  good  likeness,  seems  to  me." 

The  captain  stared  at  the  thing  on  the  easel.  Among 
the  luxuries  which  Obadiah  Burgess  had  purchased  in 
the  first  flush  of  prosperity  following  his  coming  into 
possession  of  his  Aunt  Sarah's  legacy  was  a  camera. 
With  this  camera  Obadiah  had,  until  the  novelty  wore 
off,  snap-shot  almost  everything  of  consequence,  ani 
mate  and  inanimate,  about  the  place.  On  one  occasion 
he  had  "shot"  Mr.  Calvin  Wentworth.  The  shot  was 
anything  but  a  bull's-eye  if  grace  of  attitude  and  beauty 
of  pose  were  to  be  considered,  but  as  a  caricature  of  the 
ex-metropolite's  languid  manner  and  self-satisfied  smirk 
it  was  a  huge  and  glorious  success.  It  was  a  bit  out  of 
focus,  too,  which  made  Cousin  Calvin's  thin,  knicker- 
bockered  legs  appear  thinner  and  his  nose  longer. 

With  this  photograph  as  a  foundation  Joe  had  pro 
ceeded  to  lovingly  build  a  "crayon  enlargement."  In  his 
desire  to  "get  the  likeness"  he  had  copied  the  snap-shot 
with  painstaking  exactness.  And,  in  a  measure,  he  had 
got  it,  the  enlargement  was  an  unmistakable  portrait  of 
Mr.  Wentworth ;  anyone  having  met  the  gentleman  more 

265 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

than  once  or  twice  would  be  sure  to  recognize  it.  But 
in  the  process  of  enlargement  the  photograph's  peculiari 
ties  were  likewise  enlarged  and  unwittingly  caricatured 
— a  caricature  of  a  caricature,  so  to  speak.  And,  in 
order  to  add  a  final  killing  touch  to  this  outbreak  of 
genius  and  probably  also  to  insure  against  any  possibility 
of  mistake  as  to  identity,  the  artist  had  drawn,  from 
memory  this  time,  a  portrait  of  Sport,  the  Wentworth 
dog,  lying  at  his  master's  feet.  Sport,  in  the  crayon  en 
largement,  looked  as  if  he  had  been  badly  stuffed  by  an 
amateur  taxidermist,  also  as  if  the  stuffing  process  had 
hurt  exceedingly. 

The  young  Raphael  who  had  produced  this  masterpiece 
gazed  upon  it  for  a  full  minute  without  speaking.  As 
Captain  Noah  said  afterward,  "You  could  almost  see  the 
pride  oozin'  out  around  his  collar  he  was  swellin'  so 
with  it."  Then  he  drew  a  deep,  satisfied  breath  and 
said:  "Well,  what  do  you  think  of  it?" 

Hearing  no  answer,  he  turned  to  find  the  captain  reach 
ing  for  his  handkerchief.  His  face  was  red,  and  he 
seemed  to  be  struggling  with  emotion,  admiration 
doubtless. 

"What's  the  matter?"  demanded  Joe.  "You  feel  sick? 
Eh  ?  You  ain't  langhin',  are  you  ?" 

Noah  shook  his  head  violently.  Producing  the  hand 
kerchief  he  wiped  his  forehead,  blew  his  nose  vigorously 
and  replied:  "Laughin'?  What  is  there  to  laugh  about? 
It's  pretty  hot  up  aloft  here,  that's  all.  Whew !" 

"Um-hm.  I  suppose  'tis  pretty  hot,  but  I'm  generally 
so  busy  while  I'm  here  that  I  don't  mind  it.  What  do 

266 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

you  think  of  it,  Cap'n  Newcomb?  Know  who  'tis,  don't 
you  ?" 

"I  sartin  do.  I'd  know  it  if  I  sighted  it  through  a 
thick  fog." 

"Um-hm/'  with  the  pride  of  the  conscientious  work 
man,  "it  seemed  to  me  I'd  caught  the  likeness  pretty 
well.  And  that  dog,  now?  What  do  you  think  of  that 
dog  ?  I  did  him  free  hand ;  tried  to  get  him  to  stay  still 
long  enough  for  me  to  draw  him,  but  he  wouldn't. 
Pretty  good,  ain't  he  ?" 

Noah  gazed  reverently  at  the  crayoned  quadruped. 
"He's  a  wonder,"  he  said,  with  feeling. 

"Glad  you  like  him.  And  now,  honest,  Cap'n  New- 
comb,  how  do  you  like  that  as  a — as  a  picture  of  Mr. 
Wentworth  ?" 

The  captain  waited  a  moment  before  replying;  he  was 
trying  to  frame  an  answer  which  should  be  both  truth 
ful  and  satisfying.  Then  he  said,  solemnly:  "Joe,  if  I 
had  wanted  to  pay  to  have  a  picture  of  Calvin  Went 
worth  painted  I  couldn't  have  got  one  that  satisfied  me 
the  way  that  one  does.  Not  for  no  money  I  couldn't. 
It's  just  the  way  I'd  like  to  have  him  painted.  There! 
does  that  satisfy  you?  Now,"  he  added,  hastily,  "tell 
me  all  about  it.  How  long  have  you  been  to  work  on 
her?  What  are  you  cal'latin'  to  do  with  her?  Tell  me 
the  whole  thing." 

So  Joe  told.    He  had  been  at  work  on  the  portrait  for 

nearly  six  weeks,  in  his  spare  time,  of  course.    The  idea 

of  making  a  crayon  enlargement  of  Mr.  Wentworth  had 

occurred  to  him  quite  suddenly,  had  come  as  a  real  in- 

13  267 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

spiration.     He  had  kept  it  a  secret  because  he  intended 
it  to  be  a  surprise  to  the  gentleman. 

"I  was  goin'  to  give  it  to  him  on  his  birthday,"  he  said. 
"And  now  he's  liable  to  be  in  New  York  when  his  birth 
day  comes.  Ain't  that  too  bad!  I  don't  know  what  to 
do  with  it  now ;  whether  to  send  it  to  him  or  wait  till  he 
comes  back,  or  what  ?  That's  why  I  got  you  out  here  and 
told  you  about  it,  Cap'n  Newcomb.  What  would  you  do 
if  you  was  me?" 

The  captain,  still  staring,  as  if  fascinated,  at  the  por 
trait,  was  seized  with  another  heat  attack.  He  mopped 
his  forehead  and  eyes,  choked  once  or  twice  and  then 
asked:  "What  was  you  goin'  to  make  him  a  birthday 
present  of  it  for,  Joe?  What  was  the  idea?  Love  him 
as  much  as  all  that,  do  you?" 

"Why  no,  I  don't  love  him  exactly,  as  I  know  of.  But 
he's  rich,  you  know " 

"Oh,  he  is,  eh?" 

"Well,  ain't  he?  Everybody  says  he's  awful  rich,  got 
loads  of  money.  I  thought  I'd  make  this  enlargement  of 
him  and  perhaps  he'd — he'd  let  me  have  somethin' — 
somethin'  I  want." 

"Somethin'  you  want?    What  do  you  want?" 

"Well,  I  want  some  money,  a  lot  of  money." 

"You  want  money?  For  that?  I  thought  you  was 
goin'  to  give  it  to  him." 

"So  I  am ;  that's  what  I  planned  to  do.  But  I  thought — 
Well,  you  see  I  thought  maybe  he'd  be  pleased  with 
it.  You  think  he  will  be  pleased,  don't  you,  Cap'n  New- 
comb?" 

Captain  Noah  rubbed  his  chin.    "I  know  I'd  be  pleased 
268 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

if  you  gave  it  to  me,"  he  said.  "But  go  ahead,  Joe ;  sup 
pose  he  is  pleased,  what  then?" 

"Why  then  I  thought — I  thought  I'd  ask  him  to  lend 
me  the  money.  I  could  pay  it  back  a  little  at  a  time,  I 
guess.  Anyhow  I'd  try  awful  hard." 

There  was  a  look  of  determination  on  the  lad's  face 
which  the  captain  had  not  seen  there  before.  He  had 
considered  the  young  fellow  a  listless,  almost  lazy  speci 
men,  but  at  this  particular  moment  he  appeared  eager  and 
energetic  enough.  Noah  was  interested. 

"What  do  you  want  the  money  for?"  he  asked. 

Joe  hesitated.  He  glanced  at  the  closed  trapdoor,  then 
at  his  questioner  and  then  at  the  floor. 

"I  can't  tell  you  what  I  want  it  for,"  he  said,  soberly. 
"I — I  need  it,  that's  all.  Do  you  suppose  likely  he'll  let 
me  have  it?  Gee!  I  wish  he  would." 

"But  what  do  you  need  it  for,  Joe  ?  Goin'  to  buy  some- 
thin',  was  you  ?" 

"No,  I'm  goin'  to  pay  somethin'.  And — and,"  with 
another  burst  of  the  same  fierce  eagerness,  "then  I'm 
goin'  away.  I'm  goin'  out  West  somewheres.  That's 
where  I  want  to  be.  Gee!  I'm  sick  of  stayin'  around 
here,  livin'  on  Aunt  Melissy  and — and  doin'  for — for 
him.  I'm  goin'  out  West.  I  want  to  be  on  a  ranch  or 
somethin'  like  that.  And  I'll  be  there,  too.  I  will,  you 
see  if  I  don't" 

The  captain's  interest  had  increased  mightily.  This 
sudden  outbreak  on  the  part  of  Mrs.  Mayo's  nephew  sur 
prised  him.  Now  he  remembered  that  early  in  their 
acquaintance  the  housekeeper  had  said  that  the  lad's  am- 

269 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

bition  was  to  go  West  and  work  on  a  cattle  ranch.    He 
had  paid  little  attention  to  the  statement  at  the  time. 

"Humph!  so  you  want  to  be  a  cowboy,  do  you,  Joe?" 
he  asked.  "I  thought  you  was  cal'latin'  to  be  a  painter." 

Joe  shook  his  head.  "I  like  to  paint  first-rate,"  he 
said,  "but  I  don't  figger  to  make  my  whole  livin'  doin'  it. 
You  have  to  be  awful  good  to  do  that,  everybody  says. 
I  can  do  crayon  enlargements  pretty  well,  but  that's  about 
all,  I  guess.  Anyhow,  'tain't  what  I  want  to  do.  I  want 
to  go  West  and  work  my  way  up  on  a  ranch  or  somethin' 
till  I  come  to  one  of  my  own." 

"How  do  you  know  you'll  like  it?" 

The  boy's  eyes  flashed.  "I  know,"  he  declared.  "You 
bet  I  know!  Gee!  I  dream  about  it  nights." 

Captain  Noah  reflected.  "Hum,"  he  mused.  "I  know 
two  or  three  fellers  out  West  there,  men  I  used  to  meet 
in  the  old  shippin'  days  in  'Frisco.  One  of  'em  in  par 
ticular  was  a  good  friend  of  mine — is  yet,  I  shouldn't 
wonder.  I  presume  likely  if  I  wrote " 

He  paused.    The  lad's  gaze  was  fixed  upon  his  face. 

"You're  in  earnest  in  this,  are  you,  Joe?"  he  asked. 
"Would  you  go  right  off  if  you  had  the  job?  Provided 
your  aunt  was  willing  I  mean?" 

"You  bet  I  would !" 

"Um-hm.  But  what's  this  money  you  want  to  borrow 
from  Mr.  Wentworth?  You're  goin'  to  pay  somethin' 
with  it,  you  say?  What  somethin'?" 

The  fire  died  in  the  lad's  eyes.  The  frightened  look 
returned. 

"I  can't  tell  you,"  he  muttered. 
270 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

"Why  not  ?  Don't  you  want  me  to  write  to  my  friend 
out  West  there?" 

"Yes,  yes,  I  do.    But— but  I  can't  tell  you." 

"Can't,  eh?  Well,  I'm  sorry.  I  doubt  if  I'd  feel  like 
recommendin'  a  young  chap  who  borrowed  money  to  pay 
— to  pay  somethin'  he  didn't  like  to  tell  of.  Eh?  How 
about  that?" 

Joe  did  not  answer.  He  stared  sullenly  at  the  floor  of 
the  loft. 

"Does  your  Aunt  Melissy  know  about  this  money  you 
want  to  pay?" 

The  boy  looked  up.  ''Don't  you  tell  her/'  he  begged. 
"Don't  you  tell  her  a  word.  You  promised  me  you 
wouldn't  tell  anybody  anything.  You  know  you  did. 
Don't  you  tell." 

"I  shan't;  I'll  keep  my  word,  Joe.  Only  I'm  kind  of 
sorry.  I'd  like  to  have  tried  to  help  along  that  ranch 
proposition  of  yours." 

Joe  looked  down  again.  There  was  a  little  choke  in 
his  voice  as  he  answered.  "I  know,"  he  said;  "and  I'm 
ever  so  much  obliged  to  you,  Cap'n  Newcomb.  But — but 
I  can't  tell,  honest  I  can't.  Thank  you,  just  as  much." 

Somehow  or  other  Captain  Noah  felt  conscience- 
stricken.  He  laid  a  hand  on  the  boy's  sleeve. 

"Say,  Joe,"  he  said,  "let  me  suggest  somethin'  else  to 
you,  will  you?  Don't  send  that  picture  to  Mr.  Went- 
worth  in  New  York.  You  don't  know  his  address  there, 
anyway,  so  you  couldn't  very  well  send  it  if  you  wanted 
to.  And  don't  give  it  to  him  here  in  Trumet  nor  ask  him 
to  lend  you  that  money  till  you've  come  to  me  and  told 
me  you're  ready  to  do  it.  Promise  me  that,  will  you, 

271 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

Joe?     It's  your  good  I'm  thinkin'  of  and  nothin'  else. 
Will  you  promise  ?" 

The  eager  look  had  gone  from  Joe's  face  and  the  old 
listless,  almost  sullen,  one  returned.  However,  he  prom 
ised.  The  captain  lifted  the  trapdoor. 

"I  must  be  goin',"  he  observed.  "Got  to  take  another 
cruise  up  to  the  post  office  after  that  letter  I've  been  ex- 
pectin'  for  the  last  land-knows-how-long.  I  never  seem 
to  get  it,  but  I'm  always  expectin'." 

He  was  descending  the  ladder  when  an  exclamation 
from  Toe  caused  him  to  stop  and  look  up.  The  boy  was 
fumbling  in  his  jacket  pocket. 

"What's  the  matter?"  demanded  Captain  Noah.  Joe 
continued  to  fumble.  Then  from  the  pocket  he  produced 
an  assortment  of  crumpled  papers,  and  from  among  them 
an  envelope. 

"I  got  it  up  to  the  post  office  three  days  ago,"  he  stam 
mered,  confused  and  crestfallen.  "  'Twas  in  our  box  and 
I  took  it  to  bring  home  to  you.  I've  been  so  busy  with 
that,"  pointing  to  the  portrait,  "and — and  all  the  rest  that 
I  must  have  clean  forgot  it.  I  don't  know  when  I'd  have 
thought  of  it  if  you  hadn't  said  'letter/  Gee!  I  hope  it 
ain't  anything  important." 

The  captain  took  the  envelope.  One  glance  at  the 
handwriting,  to  say  nothing  of  the  printed  name  and  ad 
dress  in  the  corner,  was  sufficient.  It  was  the  letter  from 
Chase,  the  New  York  broker,  the  letter  he  had  been  await 
ing  so  long. 

"Humph !"  he  grunted.  "  'Tis  kind  of  important,  that's 
a  fact.  How  long  have  you  had  it  in  storage,  did  you  say, 
Joe?  Three  days,  was  it?" 

272 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

"Yes.  I'm  awful  sorry.  I  guess,"  with  a  sigh,  "you 
won't  think  I'm  liable  to  be  much  good,  out  West  or  any 
wheres  else,  after  this.  Well,  maybe  I  ain't.  Sometimes 
I  think  I'm  just  no  good  and  that's  all." 

Seventeen-year-old  brains  should  not  think  in  that 
fashion.  Captain  Noah  protested. 

"Sho,  sho!"  he  cried.  "Mustn't  talk  that  way,  boy. 
I'll  forgive  your  forgettin'  the  letter.  You  put  it  in  your 
pocket,  and  that's  pretty  nigh  fatal,  that  is.  Once  let  a 
letter,  whether  it  ought  to  be  mailed  or  delivered,  get 
into  a  man's  pocket  and  you've  got  a  combination  that's 
been  responsible  for  more  family  rows  than  there  have 
been  wrecks  in  the  Atlantic  Ocean.  I'll  forgive  you,  Joe ; 
I'm  only  too  glad  to  get  the  thing  finally  and  at  last." 

With  the  letter  in  his  hand  he  crossed  the  yard  and  en 
tered  the  back  door  of  the  house.  Mrs.  Mayo  was  in  the 
kitchen,  busy  as  always.  She  looked  up  from  her  ironing 
as  he  entered. 

"Hello!"  she  exclaimed.  "Back  again,  eh?  You  must 
have  used  your  car,  I  guess.  Don't  tell  me  you've  walked 
to  the  post  office  and  back  so  soon." 

"I  shan't  think  of  tellin'  you  any  such  thing  for  two 
reasons — the  first  is  that  'twould  be  a  lie,  and  the  second 
is  that  you  wouldn't  believe  it.  There  ain't  a  mite  of  use 
in  lyin'  when  you  can't  get  your  lie  believed.  That's  al 
ways  been  my  motto,  Melissy — one  of  'em,  anyhow." 

Just  when  the  housekeeper  and  he  had  begun  address 
ing  each  other  by  their  Christian  names  it  is  doubtful  if 
either  of  them  could  have  told.  The  use  of  such  names 
early  in  acquaintance  is  a  pleasant  Cape  Cod  custom,  and 
they  had  adopted  it  as  their  acquaintanceship  ripened  into 

273 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

friendship.  The  captain  called  all  his  friends,  no  matter 
of  what  rank  in  life,  by  their  Christian  names,  and  he  had 
come  to  consider  Mrs.  Mayo  a  very  good  friend  indeed. 
She  was  a  mysterious  friend  and  still  the  one  refractory 
bit  that  would  not  fit  into  his  "picture  puzzle,"  but  mys 
teries  are  always  fascinating.  And  either  Captain  Noah's 
inclinations  or  reasoning,  or  both,  had  convinced  him 
that,  whatever  Mrs.  Mayo's  part  in  the  mystery  might  be, 
there  was  nothing  disgraceful  about  it.  No,  indeed !  It 
was  odd  how  thoroughly  convinced  he  was  of  that. 

The  lady  looked  at  him  and  smiled. 

"I  wonder  if  you  ever  told  a  real  lie  in  your  life, 
Noah,"  she  observed.  "I  don't  believe  you  ever  did." 

The  captain  stared  at  her  in  bewildered  amazement. 

"For  the  land  sakes,  why?"  he  demanded. 

"Because  you  don't  look  as  if  you  ever  did  or  ever 
could." 

"My  soul !  Well,  I'm  much  obliged.  George  Washin'- 
ton  would  have  to  shove  over  on  that  marble  horse-block 
of  his  up  to  the  Boston  Public  Garden  and  make  room 
for  me,  wouldn't  he,  if  that  was  true.  He's  safe  from 
crowdin'  for  a  spell  yet,  I  cal'late.  Never  told  a  lie !  If 
you  knew  how  many —  Tut,  tut,  tut !  But,  say,  Melissy, 
what's  become  of  all  those  breakfast  dishes?" 

"Become  of  'em?    Why,  what  do  you  mean?" 

"I  mean  what  did  you  do  with  'em  ?  When  I  went  out 
of  this  kitchen  a  spell  ago  you  was  all  walled  in  with 
dishes,  like  a  scallop-opener  in  a  heap  of  shells.  Now 
they're  all  out  of  sight  and  here  you  are  ironin'.  What 
did  you  do  with  'em?" 

274 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

"Do  with  'em?  Why,  I  washed  'em,  of  course,  and 
put  'em  away  in  the  pantry." 

"You  didn't!     Not  all  of  'em,  all  by  yourself?" 

"Of  course  I  did.    There  weren't  so  many." 

The  captain  shook  his  head.  "My,  my,  my!"  he  said, 
admiringly.  "Well,  long  as  you  and  George  Washin'ton 
are  such  chums  I  suppose  I've  got  to  believe  it,  but  I  tell 
you  this,  Melissy:  If  ever  I  go  to  sea  again  I'm  goin'  to 
ship  you  as  crew.  I  won't  need  anybody  else.  You  could 
handle  ship,  stand  all  the  watches,  and  have  spare  time 
enough  left  to  cook  in,  besides." 

The  housekeeper  laughed  and  declared  he  was  talking 
nonsense,  but  she  looked  pleased,  nevertheless.  A  mo 
ment  later,  however,  her  expression  changed  and  she  was 
grave  enough  when  she  asked: 

"Noah,  are  you  responsible  for  so  many  of  our  gro 
ceries  and  supplies  comin'  from  Boston  now?" 

Captain  Noah,  who  had  not  been  expecting  this,  was 
rather  flustered  for  the  moment. 

"Why — why,"  he  stammered,  "they  have  been  comin? 
from  Boston  for  quite  a  spell,  haven't  they  ?  That  is,  the 
heft  of  'em." 

"You  know  what  I  mean.  I  don't  mean  comin'  from 
Boston  to  Balaam  Griggs  and  then  here;  I  mean  comin' 
here  direct.  Obadiah  tells  me  he  orders  direct  now,  but 
I'm  pretty  sure  he  didn't  have  gumption  enough  all  by 
himself  to  think  of  doin'  it.  It  was  you,  wasn't  it?" 

The  captain  pulled  his  beard.  "Well,  Melissy,"  he  said,, 
"maybe  you'll  recollect  one  time  when  you  and  I  had  a 
little  talk  and  you  said — that  is,  you  gave  me  to  under 
stand " 

275 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

"I  know  what  I  said.    I'm  not  likely  to  forget  it." 

"Well — er — naturally  then,  bein'  a  friend  of  Obe's,  I — 
But  say,  you  don't  feel  bad  because  they  come  direct  in 
stead  of  through  Balaam's  commission  agency,  do  you?" 

"No,  you  know  I  don't." 

"How  about  Balaam?    How  does  he  feel?" 

Mrs.  Mayo  turned  away. 

"He  doesn't  like  it,"  she  answered,  shortly. 

"Don't,  eh?    What  does  he  say?" 

Her  answer  was  brief,  but  its  tone  conveyed  much  to 
Noah's  mind. 

"He  says —  Oh,  well,  we  won't  talk  about  it,"  she  said. 

The  captain's  fist  came  down  upon  the  kitchen  table 
with  a  bang. 

"Yes,  we  will  talk  about  it,"  he  declared.  "It's  high 
time  we  talked  about  it.  What  right  has  he  got  to " 

She  held  up  a  hand.     "Please,  please,"  she  begged. 

"But,  Melissy,  by  thunder,  it's " 

"Noah,  do  you  want  me  to  be  very  unhappy;  to  be  in 
more  trouble?" 

"No,  course  I  don't." 

"Then — then  don't  talk  about — about  certain  things, 
and  don't  ask  questions.  I  can't  answer  them.  I  told 
you  long  ago  what  you  should  do;  you  should  tell  your 
friend  the  plain  truth  and  have  him  get  rid  of  the  whole 
lot  of  us,  of  Balaam  and  that  Wentworth  man  and  Joe 
and  me.  That's  what  you  should  do." 

"Well,  I  shan't.     Not  of  you  and  Joe,  at  any  rate.'* 

"Why  not?" 

"Because  I  don't  believe  there's  any  reason  why  I 
should.  I  don't  care  what  you  say,  Melissy  Mayo,  I 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

know  you're  a  good  woman.  I've  knocked  around  some 
in  this  world  and  I've  learned  to  judge  folks.  I  know 
you're  straight.  And  if  Balaam  Griggs -" 

"Sshh !  shh !  Don't  say  any  more,  please.  I  mustn't  let 
you.  You  don't  know  anything  of  the  kind — you  don't 
know  anything  about  me — about  us,  at  all.  Some  of 
these  days,  when  all  this  is  through  with,  if  it  ever  is,  and 
I've  gone  away,  I — perhaps  I'll  write  you  and  tell  you  the 
whole  truth.  I  should  like  to  have  you  think  well  of  me, 
as  well  as  anyone  can,  that  is." 

"Think  well  of  you!  Think  well  of  you?  Melissy 
Mayo,  I — I — I  swear  I  don't  hardly  dast  to  say  what 
I  ...  Here!  Melissy!" 

But  she  had  gone  into  the  dining  room  and  closed  the 
door.  He  drew  his  hand  across  his  forehead  and  sud 
denly  became  aware  that  he  was  still  holding  in  the  other 
hand  the  letter  young  Kenney  had  given  him.  He  turned, 
walked  from  the  kitchen  and  up  the  stairs  to  his  room. 
There,  with  the  door  closed,  he  sat  down,  tore  open  the 
envelope  and  began  to  read. 

The  letter  was  a  long  one,  typewritten  of  course.  Mr. 
Chase  had  much  to  say  concerning  the  Ostrich  Mining 
and  Smelting  Company  of  Lake  Superior.  Noah  read  on 
and  on  with  increasing  interest.  At  one  time  the  property 
had  promised  great  things.  Then  there  was  promise  of 
a  railroad  being  built  to  open  up  that  section  of  the  coun 
try,  the  ore  could  be  promptly  and  cheaply  gotten  out  to 
market,  and  so  on.  But  the  railroad  was  not  built,  the 
company  lacked  sufficient  capital  to  go  on,  a  period  of 
stagnation  set  in,  operations  were  discontinued,  and  for 

277 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

a  long  time  Ostrich  Mining  and  Smelting  was,  to  all  in 
tents  and  purposes,  dead. 

But  recently  [wrote  Mr.  Chase],  early  last  fall  in  fact, 
there  was  a  sort  of  resurrection  and  revival  of  the  thing. 
A  big  and  powerful  syndicate  became  interested  in  other 
properties  near  there  and  it  was  reported,  and  with  reason, 
that  they  intended  taking  over  the  Ostrich  holdings.  There 
was  quite  a  little  flurry  on  the  Curb  for  a  week  or  so.  The 
stock  was  sold,  a  number  of  blocks  of  it,  for  from  thirty 
to  fifty,  one  small  lot  even  as  high  as  sixty.  For  the  Os 
trich  property  is  really  valuable,  or  would  be,  were  it  not 
for  the  prohibitive  cost  of  transportation.  Then  the  syn 
dicate  decided  not  to  buy,  the  deal  fell  through,  and  Ostrich 
fell  dead  again.  Lots  of  people  would  like  to  sell,  I  presume, 
but  of  course  no  one  wants  to  buy.  There  has  not  been 
a  share  sold  on  the  Curb  since  last  October.  I  had  one  of 
my  men  look  into  the  matter  and  he  tells  me  that  there 
have  been  but  one  hundred  shares  transferred  on  the  com 
pany's  books  since  that  time.  Those  hundred  shares  have 
been  transferred  twice  and — here  is  where  the  odd  part 
comes  in — the  three  names  involved  in  the  transactions  are 
those  of  people  down  in  that  heap  of  salt  and  sand  where 
you  are  now,  Trumet,  Mass.  On  April  fourth  one  Balaam 
Griggs — How's  that  for  a  name  to  be  wished  on  an  innocent 
child  ? — transferred  one  hundred  shares  to  one  Obadiah  Bur 
gess — And  there's  another  name,  if  you  like !  And  on 
the  same  day  one  Melissa  Mayo  transferred  a  hundred 
shares  to  said  Balaam  Griggs.  Of  course  it  was  the  same 
hundred.  Melissa  owned  the  stuff  first  and  she  sold  or 
gave  it  to  Balaam  and  he  unloaded  it  on  to  Obadiah.  But 
why  on  earth  Obadiah  should  want  it  more  than  I 

Captain  Noah  read  no  further.  He  leaned  back  in  his 
chair  and  stared  helplessly  at  the  wall  paper  on  the  oppo 
site  side  of  the  room. 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

"Melissa  Mayo!  Melissa " 

He  had  been  practically  sure  that  Obadiah's  wonderful 
"investment"  was  nothing  but  a  swindle,  a  bit  of  sharp 
dealing  on  Griggs'  part.  And  of  course  that  was  what  it 
was,  the  modus  operandi  was  childishly  simple.  Balaam 
had  known  his  cousin,  Mrs.  Mayo,  possessed  this  prac 
tically  worthless  stock;  he  had  seen  and  grasped  the  op 
portunity  to  sell  it  at  a  high  figure  to  his  trusting  friend 
and  victim.  All  this  was  plain  enough.  But  how  much 
had  Mrs.  Mayo  known?  How  deeply  was  she  involved 
in  the  shady,  contemptible  transaction?  That  was  the 
question  Noah  Newcomb  asked  himself  over  and  over 
again. 

"I  should  like  to  have  you  think  well  of  me " 

She  had  said  that;  they  were  the  last  words  he  had 
heard  her  say.  And  as  he  sat  there  staring  at  the  wall 
paper,  the  certainty  was  borne  in  upon  him  that  he  had 
come  to  think  well  of  her,  altogether  too  well  for  his  peace 
of  mind. 

If  she  was  a  party  to  this 

He  struck  the  table  with  his  fist  and  rose  to  his  feet. 

"No,  by  the  Lord,  she  ain't,"  he  said  aloud.  A  moment 
later  he  was  on  his  way  downstairs. 


CHAPTER   XVII 

MRS.  MAYO  was  in  the  kitchen,  still  busy  with 
her  ironing,  when  he  entered.    Her  expression, 
as  she  bent  over  the  table,  was  grave,  almost 
sad,  and  she  did  not  look  up  as  he  came  in.     Captain 
Noah  hesitated,  walked  to  the  door,  and  then,  pulling 
forward  a  wooden  chair  which  stood  by  the  window,  sat 
down. 

"Well,  Melissy,"  he  observed,  "still  hard  at  it,  I  see." 

The  housekeeper  nodded. 

"Yes,"  she  said. 

"Too  busy  to  talk  a  minute  or  two,  are  you?" 

"No,  I  guess  not."  And,  then,  looking  at  him  for 
the  first  time,  she  added:  "If  it's  anything  important 
you  want  to  talk  about." 

The  captain  pulled  at  his  head.  "Why,  I  don't  know's 
'tis,"  he  said,  "and  I  don't  know's  'tain't." 

"Well,  if  you  don't,  I  don't  know  who  does." 

"So?  Well,  I  didn't  know  but  you  might.  Do  you 
know  anything  about  stock,  Melissy?" 

"Why,  a  little  mite,  perhaps.  My  father  kept  a  dozen 
cows  or  so  when  I  was  young.  He  used  to  sell  milk. 

If  it's  that  kind  of  stock  you  mean ?" 

280 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

"No,  'tain't.  The  stock  I  mean  has  more  to  do  with 
lambs  than  it  has  with  cows.  I  mean  stock  exchange 
stocks,  stocks  and  bonds  and  that  sort  of  thing.  Do 
you  know  anything  about  them?" 

"No,  precious  little.  I  never  was  sociable  enough 
with  'em  to  know  a  great  deal.  I  should  think  that  was 
more  in  your  line  than  'twas  in  mine,  Cap'n  Noah.  You 
own  some,  don't  you?  Seems  to  me  I  remember 
your  tellin'  me  about  some  investments  you  had." 

"Oh,  yes,  I've  got  some.  Not  enough  to  lame  my 
wrists  cuttin'  off  coupons,  nor  even  enough  to  limber 
'em  up  on  the  job — but  some." 

"Then  why  in  the  world  do  you  ask  me  ?" 

"Because  the  kind  of  stock  I  was  cal'latin'  to  ask 
about  wasn't  the  kind  I've  ever  bought  or  sold.  It's  a 
minin'  stock,  and  minin'  stocks  are  somethin'  I've  al 
ways  steered  clear  of.  I  should  be  well  to  wind'ard 
of  this  partic'lar  one  only  a  friend  of  mine  has  put  some 
of  his  money  into  it  and  has  been  askin'  my  advice." 

"Oh,  I  see.     What  kind  of  a  mine  is  it?" 

The  captain  looked  up  at  her  from  under  his  brows. 
"It's  a  copper  mine,"  he  said. 

Mrs.  Mayo's  interest  deepened.  She  put  down  her 
iron  on  the  stand  and  turned  toward  her  companion. 

"A  copper  mine?"  she  repeated.  "Why,  isn't  that 
funny !" 

"What's  funny?" 

"Why,  your  askin'  me  about  it.  Copper  minin'  stock 
is  the  only  kind  of  stock  I  do  know  anything  about. 
And  I  don't  know  much  about  that;  only  I  did  own 


281 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

"You  did,  eh?  Then  I've  come  to  the  right  port  to 
load  up  with  information,  I  should  say.  So  you  owned 
some  copper  stock,  eh?" 

"Yes.  And  for  a  good  many  years  I  thought  it  wasn't 
goin'  to  be  worth  ten  cents  a  barrel.  Then  at  last  I  sold 
it  and  got  quite  a  little  money  for  it — not  anywhere 
near  what  it  cost  of  course,  but  a  good  deal  more  than 
I  ever  expected.  So  it  shows  you  can't  always  tell.  Per 
haps  it'll  work  that  way  with  your  friend;  although  he 
may  know  his  is  all  right,"  she  added. 

The  captain  smiled.  "He  thought  he  knew  when  he 
bought  it,"  he  observed.  "Now  he  ain't  so  sure." 

"Oh,  I'm  so  sorry.    What  is  the  name  of  the  stock?" 

Noah  looked  at  her  more  "ntently  than  ever.  "The 
Ostrich  Minin'  and  Smeltin'  Company  of  Lake  Supe 
rior,"  he  said,  slowly. 

She  looked  surprised,  very  much  surprised,  but  she 
did  not  look  guilty  or  even  embarrassed.  The  captain 
drew  a  long  breath  of — well,  if  not  of  relief,  certainly  of 
satisfaction.  To  possess  a  conviction  is  one  thing,  to 
have  that  conviction  strengthened  is  another.  Noah  had 
been  practically  sure  that  Melissa  Mayo  had  been  mere 
ly  an  innocent  participant  in  Obadiah  Burgess's  copper 
deal,  now  he  was  still  more  sure. 

The  housekeeper  gazed  at  him. 

"Ostrich  Minin'  and  Smeltin' !"  she  repeated.  "Why, 
Noah  Newcomb !" 

"My  name,"  admitted  the  captain,  cheerfully.  "What's 
the  matter,  Melissy?" 

"Matter?  Do  you  mean  to  tell  me  that  your  friend 
has  bought  Ostrich  Minin'  stock?" 

282 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

"Yes/' 

"Why,  that's  the  strangest  thing  I  ever  heard  of!" 

"You  don't  say !  I  don't  see  anything  so  very  strange 
about  it.  Folks  are  buyin'  stocks  like  that  every  hour 
of  every  day,  I  suppose." 

"That  isn't  what  I  mean.  I  mean  it's  so  strange  your 
askin'  my  advice  about  it.  It's  the  one  stock  I  do 
know  anything  about.  It  was  Ostrich  Minin'  and  Smelt- 
in'  I  was  tellin'  you  about,  the  stock  I  had  so  long  and 
sold." 

Captain  Noah  did  not  seem  greatly  astonished.  "I 
want  to  know!"  was  all  he  said. 

"You  want  to  know!  Is  that  all  you've  got  to  say? 
It  seems  to  me  the  queerest  thing  goin'  that  you  should 
come  and  ask  me  about  that  stock;  and  yet  you  sit  there 
and  say  'I  want  to  know,'  as  if  you'd  been  expectin'  it 
all  along." 

The  captain  made  no  comment  on  this  statement.  In 
stead  he  asked:  "How  many  shares  did  you  own,  Me- 
lissy?" 

"A  hundred.     Why?" 

"  'Twas  one  hundred  shares  my  friend  bought." 

Mrs.  Mayo,  who  had  been  standing  by  the  ironing 
table  during  the  conversation  so  far,  slowly  crossed  the 
room  and  stood  before  him. 

"Noah  Newcomb,"  she  demanded,  "what  are  you  driv- 
in'  at?" 

"Who?     Me?" 

"Yes,  you.  What  is  all  this  talk  leadin'  up  to;  all 
this  about  those  hundred  shares  of  stock,  my  stock,  and 
your  'friend.'  Who  is  your  friend?" 

19  283 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

The  captain  smiled.     "Someone  you  know,"  he  said. 

"Someone  I  know?     'Tain't  you,  yourself?" 

"No.  I  don't  often  call  myself  my  own  friend,  Melissy. 
I  ain't  so  sure  I  like  myself  as  all  that  comes  to." 

"Then  who  is  it?  ...  Oh,  I  see!  You've  been  foolin' 
me  all  this  time.  Balaam  told  you  about  his  buyin'  it, 
I  suppose." 

"Balaam?  Balaam  Griggs  you  mean?  Was  it  Balaam 
that  you  sold  your  Ostrich  to,  Melissy?" 

"Of  course  it  was,  and  you  knew  it  was.  You  and 
your  yarns  about  your  'friend' !  But  why  did  he  tell 
you?  Did  he  want  you  to  buy  it  of  him?" 

"No.  Balaam  wasn't  the  friend  I  was  mentionin',  Me 
lissy.  You  may  find  it  hard  to  believe,  but  I  ain't  any 
surer  that  I  like  him  than  I  am  that  I  like  myself.  And 
he  never  mentioned  Ostrich  stock  to  me.  Fact  is,  he'd 
sold  his  afore  I  came  here  to  live  permanent." 

"He  sold  it?  Balaam  had  sold  the  stock  he  bought 
of  me?  And  before  you  came  here?  Why,  he  must 
have  sold  it  right  off  after  he  bought  it  of  me." 

"I  shouldn't  wonder.  Er — Melissy,  would  you  mind 
answerin'  a  kind  of  personal  question?  Mind  teilin' 
me  how  much  Balaam  gave  you  for  that  Ostrich  stuff 
of  yours?" 

She  shook  her  head.  "I'm  sorry,  Noah,"  she  an 
swered.  "I  wish  I  could  tell  you,  but  I  can't.  You  see, 
I  promised  Balaam  I  wouldn't.  Fact  is,  the  stock,  he 
and  I  both  agreed,  wasn't  much  account  anyhow  and  he 
just  bought  it  as  a — a  kind  of  favor  to  me,  as  you  might 

say.  I  owed  him Well,  never  mind  that.  I  told 

him  I  wouldn't  mention  the  thing  at  all,  and  I  shouldn't 

284 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

only — only  you  kind  of  fooled  me  into  it.  What  made 
you?  Who  is  this  friend  of  yours — always  provided 
there  is  one  at  all?" 

"There  sartin  is.  Well,  long's  you  can't  tell  me  what 
Balaam  paid  for  it,  maybe  you'd  like  to  hear  what  he 
sold  it  for.  He  sold  it  for  fifty  dollars  a  share." 

Mrs.  Mayo  groped  for  a  chair  and  sat  heavily  down 
upon  it.  The  color  left  her  face. 

"Fifty  dollars  a  share !"  she  repeated,  slowly.  "Cap'n 
Newcomb,  are  you  foolin'  again  ?" 

"No,  Melissy." 

"Then — then  you  must  be  crazy." 

"I  ain't,  and  neither  was  Balaam.  The  other  party  in 
the  deal  might  stand  a  chance  of  bein'  convicted  on  a 
charge  of  softness  of  the  skull — that  is  the  feller  that 
paid  the  fifty  per." 

"Whc^-who  was  it?" 

"Obadiah  Burgess." 

The  effect  of  this  name  was  to  render  her  speechless 
for  a  moment.  She  grew  paler  even  than  before. 

"Obadiah— Obadiah  Burgess!"  she  repeated.  "He 
sold  it  to  Obadiah  Burgess— for— for  fifty  dollars  a 
share !  That's— that's  five  thousand  dollars,  isn't  it  ?  He 
took  five  thousand  dollars  from  him!  Oh,  Noah,  you 
ain't  foolin',  are  you?" 

He  shook  his  head. 

"No,  Melissy,"  he  said,  gravely,  "I  ain't  foolin'.  He 
sold  it  to  Obe — let  him  have  it  as  a  particular  favor  to 
him — for  five  thousand  cash." 

"Oh !  Oh !  Oh  !  Noah,  he— he  paid  me  five  dollars 
285 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

a  share  for  it.  There !  I  have  broken  my  word,  but  1 
don't  much  care." 

The  captain  leaned  back  in  his  chair.  He  whistled, 
long  and  shrilly. 

"Whew !"  he  exclaimed.  "If  that  ain't — "  He  paused, 
laughed,  and  then  added:  "Well,  in  some  respects  I'll 
take  off  my  hat  to  Balaam  Griggs.  In  his  line  he's 
pretty  hard  to  beat.  Buy  it  for  five  hundred — of  you, 
his  own  relation — and  then  sell  it  for  five  thousand  to 
his  particular  friend.  Tut !  tut !  tut !  That's  some  trad- 
in' !" 

"But,  Noah,  are  you  sure  he  did  it?  I  can't  hardly 
believe  he  could." 

"He  did.  And,  Melissy,  I  cal'late  he  had  as  good  as 
sold  it  to  Obadiah  before  he  bought  it  of  you.  The 
transfers  of  stock  in  the  books  were  all  together,  you  to 
Balaam  and  Balaam  to  Obe.  I  guess  there  ain't  much 
doubt  that  he  had  made  the  dicker  and  fixed  the  five 
thousand  price  afore  he  actually  paid  you  the  five  hun 
dred.  Let's  see,  you're  his  first  cousin,  ain't  you  ?  It's  a 
good  thing  you  ain't  his  sister,  or  you  mightn't  have  got 
but  two  hundred  and  fifty." 

She  was  silent,  thinking,  her  fingers  twisting  in  her 
lap. 

"Noah,"  she  asked,  "is  the  stock  worth — anything?" 

"Why  yes,  something  I  cal'late.  Anywheres  from 
five  to  seven  dollars  a  share  might  be  a  fair  price,  I 
should  think,  to  a  person  who  was  willin'  to  take  a  gam 
bler's  chance  and  wait." 

"But  I  can't  see —  Noah,  how  did  he  get  Mr.  Burgess 
to  pay  so  much  for  it?" 

286 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

The  captain  sniffed. 

"Melissy,"  he  answered,  "have  you  cruised  along  with 
Obe  Burgess  for  the  last  four  or  five  months  and  not 
come  to  know  that  he'd  pay  any  price  for  anything,  if 
the  right  person  talked  him  into  it?  I'd  undertake  to 
sell  Obe  a  dentist's  license  to  fit  false  teeth  into  a  hay- 
rake,  if  I  could  have  a  couple  of  days'  time  and  a  pack 
age  of  throat  lozenges.  And  I'm  a  deef  and  dumb  per 
suader  compared  to  your  Cousin  Balaam." 

He  went  on  to  tell  of  the  reports  of  sales  in  the 
papers  of  the  previous  fall,  expressing  the  opinion  that 
it  was  those  papers  which  had  been  shown  Mr.  Bur 
gess. 

"Obe  thought  he'd  made  a  high  old  investment  at 
first,"  he  continued.  "Then  he  got  scared  and  wrote  for 
me  to  come  and  help  him  out.  After  I  did  come  he 
was  scared  to  tell  me,  for  fear  of  findin'  out  he  had 
made  an  idiot  of  himself,  and  'twas  only  a  little  spell 
ago  I  wormed  the  yarn  out  of  him.  He's  mighty  nerv 
ous,  Obe  is,  and  no  wonder.  His  Aunt  Sarah's  legacy 
is  fadin'  away  like  a  night's  frost  in  a  mornin'  sun. 
About  half  of  it's  gone  already,  I  judge." 

She  wrung  her  hands.  "The  poor  man !"  she  cried. 
"The  poor  man!  And  I—"  Then,  as  if  the  thought 
had  occurred  to  her  for  the  first  time,  she  turned  to 
him  and  asked  anxiously:  "Noah,  you  don't  think  I 
knew  of  this,  do  you?  You  don't  think  I  was  a — a 
partner  in — in  sellin'  him  that  stock?" 

Captain  Noah  put  back  his  head  and  laughed  heartily. 
"I  knew  you  weren't  from  the  first,  Melissy.  I've  told 
you  more'n  once  that  I've  learned  to  estimate  folks,  and 

287 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

I  made  my  estimate  of  you  long  ago.  Here!  My  soul 
and  body!  Don't  do  that,  Melissy!  Don't!" 

She  had  put  her  apron  to  her  eyes  and  was  crying 
softly.  He  sprang  from  his  chair  and  came  towards 
her,  but  she  dropped  the  apron  and  motioned  him  away. 

"Don't  mind  me,"  she  said.  "It — it  ain't  anything. 
I  don't  know  why  I  cried,  unless — unless  it  was  because 
you  said  you  trusted  me.  I  don't  see  how  you  can." 

"I  don't  see  how  I  couldn't.  If  you  ain't  a  good, 
straight,  honest  woman,  Melissy  Mayo,  then  there  ain't 
any  made." 

She  smiled  pitifully.  "And  yet  you  know  I've  been 
helpin'  cheat  poor  Mr.  Burgess,"  she  said. 

"You  ain't,  neither.  You  ain't  responsible  for  Ba 
laam's " 

"I've  kept  still  while  Balaam  sold  him  the  household 
supplies  at  big  prices.  I've  stayed  on  here  when  I  knew 
he  couldn't  afford  to  keep  me." 

This  speech  the  captain  found  it  hard  to  answer.  He 
made  a  brave  effort,  but  the  right  words  were  not 
within  hailing  distance.  She  watched  him  grow  red  in 
the  face  and  sighed. 

"You  know  it's  true,"  she  said.  "But  I  ain't  goin' 
to  let  you  think  I  knew  what  was  goin'  to  become  of 
that  Ostrich  stock  when  I  let  Balaam  have  it.  I  didn't 
My  husband  bought  those  shares  afore  he  died ;  we  was 
livin*  in  Gloucester  then  and  Joe's  mother,  my  only 
sister  she  was,  and  her  baby  was  livin'  with  us.  John, 
my  husband,  had  some  friends  up  there  in  Michigan 
and  they  thought  high  of  the  Ostrich  property  and  gave 
John  a  tip  to  get  in  on  the  ground  floor.  So  he  got 

288 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

in,  though,"  with  a  shrug,  "it  was  more  like  the  cellar 
than  the  ground  floor,  I'm  afraid.  But  up  to  the  time 
of  his  death  he  had  confidence  in  it  and  kept  sayin* 
he  was  goin'  to  hold  on.  I'd  most  forgot  the  stuff 
through  all  the  years  since  he  died,  and  lately,"  she 
sighed  and  looked  wearily  out  of  the  window,  "lately 
I've  had  other  things  to  keep  me  thinkin'.  But  along 
that  time  in  April  Balaam  came  to  me  and  said  he  un 
derstood  I  still  had  those  shares.  I  said  yes,  I  believed 
I  had,  and  he  said,  as  a  favor  to  me,  he'd  be  willin'  to 
take  'em  over  as  part  payment.  So  I  thought  'twas  a 
wonderful  chance  and  I  sold  'em.  That's  all  the  story. 
Of  course  if  I'd  known  what  he  meant  to  do  with  'em 
— cheat  that  poor,  simple,  good-hearted  man  out  of  his 
money — I'd  have  cut  my  hand  off  before  I  let  him  have 
'em,  debt  or  no  debt." 

Her  fingers  clenched  in  her  lap  and  her  eyes  flashed. 
Noah  said  quietly,  "So  there's  a  debt,  eh?  I  thought  as 
much." 

She  turned  on  him  in  alarm.  "You  thought  as 
much?"  she  repeated.  "What  do  you  mean?  What 
did  you  think?" 

"I  thought  there  was  some  reason  why  Balaam  had 
you  workin'  here,  where  you  felt  you  hadn't  ought  to  be, 
and  kept  you  here  against  your  will.  And  the  only 
reason  I  could  think  of  was  that,  somehow  or  other, 
you'd  come  to  owe  him  money.  I  know  he'd  rub  his 
own  grandmother  through  a  sieve  if  the  old  lady  had 
swallowed  a  ten-cent  piece,  and  I  know  if,  by  hook  or 
crook,  he  got  you  under  his  thumb,  he'd  stop  at  precious 
close  to  nothin'  to  keep  you  there.  You  owe  him  money, 

289 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

Melissy.  You  just  the  same  as  said  so.  Will  you  tell 
me  how  much  it  is?" 

She  shook  her  head.  She  looked  worried,  almost 
frightened. 

"No,  no,"  she  cried,  hurriedly.  "I  didn't  say  I  owed 
him  anything.  You  mustn't  ask  me,  Noah.  Please." 

"I  shouldn't  ask  you  if  I  wasn't  your  friend,  Melissy. 
And  I  ain't  askin'  for  curiosity,  either.  How  much  do 
you  owe  Balaam  Griggs?  Come  now,  tell  me." 

But  she  would  not  tell.    He  tried  again. 

"Of  course  it  ain't  of  my  business,  Melissy,"  he  be 
gan.  She  interrupted  him. 

"It  isn't  that,  Noah,"  she  said.  "I  don't  mind  you 
askin'  a  bit.  I  know  you're  doin'  it  just  because  you're 
interested  and  friendly.  But  I  can't  tell  you,  truly  I 
can't." 

"Why  not  ?  It  can't  be  such  a  Scargo  Hill  of  money 
that  I'd  be  afraid  to  sight  it  through  a  spyglass.  Would 
you  mind  tellin'  me  what  you  owe  it  for?" 

This  question  seemed  to  trouble  and  alarm  her  more 
than  the  other. 

"Oh,  no,  no !"  she  cried.  "Please  don't  ask  me,  Noah. 
Please !" 

He  came  close  to  her. 

"Melissy,"  he  said  gently,  "I  hate  to  torment  you. 
I  hate  to  keep  askin'.  I'm  doin'  it  not  just  because  I'm 
interested  and  friendly,  as  you  say,  but  for  a  bigger 
reason  than  that.  I  know  you're  in  some  sort  of 
trouble,  deep  trouble,  and  I  believe  I  could  help  you  out. 
I'm  sartin  I  could.  I'm  goin'  to,  if  you'll  give  me  the 
chance." 

290 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

The  tears  were  in  her  eyes  again,  but  she  still  shook 
her  head. 

"No,  Noah/'  she  said,  "you're  awful  kind  and  good  and 
I'm — I  don't  dare  tell  you  how  grateful  I  am  to  you  for 
wantin'  to  help ;  but  you  can't  help,  nobody  can." 

"I  can,  and  I'm  goin'  to." 

"You  can't.  It's  a  trouble  I  must  get  out  of  myself. 
I  will,  I  hope  and  trust,  give  me  time." 

She  was  trying  to  be  brave  and  to  pretend  a  confidence 
she  did  not  feel.  The  captain  recognized  the  effort  and 
realized  also  the  discouragement  behind  it.  He  swal 
lowed  hard. 

"Melissy,"  he  persisted,  "you  needn't  tell  me  what 
you  owe  this  money  for,  if  you  don't  want  to.  All  I'll 
ask  you  is  to  tell  me  how  much  it  is.  Look  here,  you 
know  I've  got  some  money  of  my  own.  Course  I  ain't 
any  Commodore  Vanderbilt  or  anything  like  that,  but 
I  ain't  liable  to  have  to  ship  afore  the  mast  in  the  poor- 
house,  neither.  You  tell  me  how  much  you  owe  Ba 
laam;  then  I'll  lend  you  enough  to  pay  him.  After 
that " 

"No,  no,  Noah.     No." 

"After  that  you  can  pay  me  a  little  at  a  time.  Mighty 
little  and  any  time.  Come  now,  let  me  do  this,  won't 
you?  It'll  just  be  a  pleasure  for  me,  honest." 

He  bent  forward  and  tried  to  look  in  her  face,  but 
she  turned  away.  It  was  a  moment  before  she  spoke. 

"You  are  a  good  man,  Noah  Newcomb,"  she  said, 
quietly.  "You're  a  good  man." 

"Who?  Me?  Rubbish!  I'm  just  a — a  capitalist, 
that's  what  I  am,  I'm  a  capitalist,  same  as  Obadiah  cal'- 

291 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

lated  he  was,  and  I'm  hankerin'  to  turn  over  my  capital. 
Only/'  he  added,  hastily,  "I  pick  my  investments  more 
careful  than  he  does  his,  that's  all.  Now,  Melissy,  we'll 
just  call  it  settled.  You  tell  me  how  much " 

She  turned  to  him  now  and,  after  one  glance  at  her 
face,  he  knew  that  it  was  settled,  and  settled  against  him. 
She  looked  up  into  his  face  and  once  more  shook  her 
head. 

"No,  Noah,"  she  said,  quietly  but  firmly.  "No,  I  can't 
do  it  and  you  mustn't  think  of  it.  If  I  had  to  borrow 
money  I  think  I'd  rather  borrow  it  of  you  than  anyone 
I  know,  but  I  can't  borrow.  That  wouldn't  help  me 
any." 

"Why  not?    I  tell  you  I  don't  need " 

"Hush !  Don't  tell  me  any  more.  Just  let  me  re 
member  what  you  have  told  me.  Be  sure  I'll  never, 
never  forget  it.  And  thank  you." 

He  was  still  rebellious.  "But  why  not,  Melissy?"  he 
demanded.  "All  I  want  to  do  is  to  see  you  happy  just 
once,  that's  all." 

She  smiled,  although  her  eyes  were  brimming. 

"I  am  happier  than  I  have  been  for  a  good  while," 
she  said.  "And  you've  made  me  so." 

"And  you  can't  tell  me  how  you  come  to  be  in  Ba 
laam's  debt?" 

"No,  Noah.  Perhaps  if  it  was  my  own  story  alto 
gether  I  could,  but  it  isn't,  it's  somebody  else's,  too ;  so 
you  see  I  can't  tell." 

Noah  clenched  his  fists. 

"I've  a  good  mind  to  grab  the  old  landshark,"  he 
growled,  "and  choke  it  out  of  him." 

292 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

This  frightened  her.  She  seized  his  arm. 
"Oh,  no,"  she  pleaded.  "Noah,  you  won't  do  any 
thing  to  him,  or  say  anything  to  him  about  it,  will  you  ? 
For  my  sake  you  won't  do  that?  It  wouldn't  do  any 
good  and  would  only  make  more  trouble.  Please  prom 
ise  you  won't." 

And  just  then,  as  one  more  justification  of  the  old 
"Speak  of  angels"  proverb,  they  heard  the  voice  of 
the  very  person  they  were  discussing.  Mr.  Balaam 
Griggs,  somewhere  on  the  premises,  was  shouting  for 
his  young  relative. 

"Joe !  Joe  Kenney !"  he  shouted.  "Jo-o-e !  Where  be 
you?" 

Mrs.  Mayo  shivered  at  the  sound.  "He'll  be  in  here 
in  a  minute,"  she  whispered.  "And  I — I  don't  feel  as 
if  I  could  see  him  just  now." 

The  captain  grunted.  "I'm  dum  sure  I  don't  want 
to  see  him,  either,"  he  muttered.  "It  might  be  too  hard 
to  put  off  that  chokin'  program  if  I  did.  I'll  clear  out, 
Melissy,  up  street  or  somewheres.  Guess  likely  I'll  go 
for  a  cruise  in  the  Pancake — my  car,  I  mean.  You  and 
me'll  have  another  talk  pretty  soon.  I  ain't  given  up 
yet.  You  think  that  notion  of  mine  over;  do  now.  It 
won't  be  the  least  mite  of  trouble  and " 

Balaam  went  by  the  window,  still  roaring  for  young 
Kenney. 

"Joe !"  he  shouted.  "Joe !  Joash  Kenney,  where  in  time 
are  you,  you  good  for  nothin'  loafer  ?  Jo-ash !" 

Captain  Noah  turned  to  Mrs.  Mayo. 

"What  did  he  call  him?"  he  asked.  But  Mrs.  Mayo 
had  gone;  the  door  leading  to  the  back  stairs  was  just 

293 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

closing.  The  captain  picked  up  his  hat  and  headed  for 
the  dining  room  and  the  front  hall,  but  before  he  could 
escape  from  the  kitchen  Mr.  Griggs  entered  it.  The 
dealer  in  antiques  and  copper  stocks  was  decidedly  not 
in  a  good  humor. 

"Seen  anything  of  that  everlastin'  young  relation  of 
mine?"  he  sputtered,  red-faced  and  out  of  breath. 

Captain  Noah  filled  and  lighted  his  pipe.  Balaam  re 
peated  his  question. 

"I  say,  have  you  seen  anything  of  that  Joe  Kenney 
'round  here?"  he  asked. 

The  captain  scratched  a  match.  "That  wan't  what  I 
heard  you  callin'  him  a  minute  ago,"  he  observed,  be 
tween  puffs. 

"What  wan't?" 

"Joe.  You  were  yellin'  the  shingles  loose  callin'  him 
some  other  name,  wan't  you?" 

"Eh?  Other  name?  I  called  him  a  good  for  nothing 
everlastin' " 

"  Twan't  those  I  meant.  You  were  callin'  him  7° — 
Jo — somethin'  or  other." 

"Humph !    I  called  him  Joash.    That's  his  name." 

"Jo — what?    I  thought  his  name  was  Joseph." 

"  Tain't.  It's  Joash.  Did  you  ever  hear  such  a  name 
in  your  life?  He  hates  to  be  called  by  it,  and  no  wonder; 
but  it  was  christened  onto  him  just  the  same.  Have  you 
seen  him  ?  I  want  him  to  do  some  cratin'  and  cartin'  over 
to  my  place  and  he's  always  off  somewheres  where  I  can't 
lay  hands  on  him,  lazy  good  for  nothin'.  ...  Eh  ?  What 
are  you  lookin'  at  me  so  funny  for?" 

The  captain  was  staring  at  Mr.  Griggs  with  a  puzzled 

294 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

expression  on  his  face.  He  seemed  to  be  trying  to  re 
member  something. 

"What  did  you  say  that  boy's  name  was?"  he  asked 
again. 

"Joash." 

"Spell  it." 

Balaam  spelt  it,  and  added :  "Have  you  seen  him,  I  ask 
you  ?" 

Captain  Noah  did  not  answer.  He  walked  briskly  out 
of  the  kitchen,  out  of  the  yard  and  down  to  the  garage 
where  he  kept  the  little  automobile. 

His  ride  was  neither  very  long  nor  very  enjoyable.  He 
narrowly  escaped  running  down  several  indignant  citi 
zens,  afoot  or  in  wagons,  because  he  seemed  to  be  quite 
absent-mindedly  unaware  of  their  proximity.  It  was  not 
until  he  had  progressed  as  far  as  the  forks  of  the  road 
leading  to  South  Trumet  that  the  puzzled  frown  left  his 
face.  He  suddenly  leaned  back  in  the  driver's  seat  and 
whistled. 

"That's  it !"  he  exclaimed  aloud.  "Sure  enough,  that's 
it!" 

He  turned  the  car  about  and,  at  a  thirty-mile  an  hour 
gait,  whizzed  back  to  Trumet  and  the  Burgess  front  gate. 
Before  that  gate  he  brought  the  automobile  to  a  stand 
still,  sprang  out,  opened  the  door  softly  and  went  upstairs 
to  his  room.  Then,  having  locked  the  door,  he  opened 
one  of  the  small  upper  drawers  of  his  bureau.  The 
drawer  was  more  than  half  full  of  papers,  memoranda, 
newspaper  clippings  and  the  like.  The  captain  had  a  way 
of  loading  his  pocketbook  with  such  things  and  then, 
when  it  became  too  corpulent  for  comfortable  transpor- 

295 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

tation,  unloading  it  into  his  bureau  drawer  or  a  compart 
ment  in  the  tray  of  his  trunk.  The  contents  of  this 
drawer  represented  almost  a  year's  accumulation  in  trunk 
tray  and  pocketbook. 

He  emptied  the  heap  upon  his  table  and,  sitting  down 
before  it,  began  looking  the  papers  over,  one  by  one.  It 
was  some  time  before  he  found  what  he  was  looking  for, 
but  at  last  he  held  it  in  his  hand.  An  oblong  strip  of 
cheap  note  paper,  evidently  torn  from  the  bottom  of  a 
letter.  Upon  it  was  written: 

sending  you  every  cent  ju 

omptly  as  ever  I  can.     For 

d's  sake  remember  how  hard  it 

n't  put  Joash,  poor  boy,  in  state's  prison. 

Leaning  back  in  his  chair  the  captain  tried  to  remem 
ber  how  that  slip  of  paper  had  come  into  his  possession. 
It  had  fallen  from  the  copy  of  the  Herald  he  was  read 
ing  on  that  first  night  of  his  first  visit  to  Trumet — first  in 
recent  years,  that  is.  And  in  accounting  for  its  presence 
between  the  Herald's  pages  he  saw  himself  again  sitting 
in  the  corner  of  the  crowded  Trumet  post  office,  beside 
the  peach  crate  waste  basket,  while  Mr.  Balaam  Griggs 
savagely  tore  a  letter  into  pieces  and  tossed  the  fragments 
in  the  direction  of  the  waste  basket. 

He  rose,  walked  over  to  the  bureau,  and  returned  with 
another  slip  of  paper,  a  note  written  by  Mrs.  Mayo  as  a 
shopping  guide  when  he  had  offered  to  do  an  errand  for 
her  in  Wellmouth  a  few  days  before.  Again  sitting 
down  at  the  table,  he  took  this  note  and  the  other  frag 
ment  and  compared  the  handwriting  upon  each.  And, 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

as  he  did  so,  slowly  an  expression  of  triumphant  and 
complete  satisfaction  began  to  dawn  upon  his  face.  He 
struck  the  table  top  a  mighty  slap  with  his  open  hand 
and  rose  to  his  feet. 

No  wonder  he  looked  triumphant.  The  long,  worri 
some  "picture  puzzle"  was,  he  believed,  solved  at  last. 
The  last  troublesome  fragment  was  fitting  into  place. 
Leaving  the  litter  of  papers  upon  the  table,  he  hurried 
downstairs  and  out  of  doors. 

He  circuited  the  house  and  approached  the  barn  from 
the  rear,  in  order  that  no  one  in  the  kitchen  might  see 
him.  He  entered  the  carriage  room  and,  softly  ascending 
the  ladder,  rapped  lightly  upon  the  under  side  of  the  trap 
door.  He  heard  a  startled  exclamation  and  the  sound  of 
a  chair  being  scraped  along  the  floor.  Then  a  voice,  Joe 
Kenney's  voice,  said  quaveringly:  "Who  is  it?" 

"It's  me,  Cap'n  Newcomb,"  whispered  the  captain. 
"Let  me  up,  Joe." 

A  weight  was  removed  from  the  trap-door  and  the  lat 
ter  was  lifted.  Captain  Noah  came  up  into  the  loft  and 
closed  the  trap  after  him.  The  crayon  enlargement  of 
Mr.  Wentworth  was  still  upon  the  easel,  and  the  artist's 
fingers,  not  to  mention  his  nose,  were  smeared  with  cfr  alk ; 
so  it  was  easy  to  see  how  he  had  occupied  his  time  since 
the  captain's  former  visit. 

"Been  hard  at  it,  haven't  you,  Joe  ?"  observed  the  cap 
tain,  with  a  nod  toward  the  easel.  "Too  busy  to  hear 
Cousin  Balaam  bellowin'  after  you  like  a  bull  of  Bashan, 
eh?" 

Joe  looked  frightened.  "Was  he  ?"  he  asked,  fearfully. 
"I  didn't  hear  him.  Gee!  honest  I  didn't." 

297 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

"Course  not,  course  not.  Well,  don't  let  that  trouble 
you  any.  Time  enough  for  him  to  find  you  when  he  does, 
I  guess  likely.  But,  Joe,  I've  come  up  here  to  ask  you 
a  question  and  I  want  you  to  answer  it.  Will  you  ?" 

"Why,  yes,  sir,  I — I  guess  so.  Course  I  will  if — if  it 
ain't " 

"And  if  you  do  answer  it,  will  you  answer  it  honest 
and  straight?" 

"Yes,  sir." 

"All  right.  Joe,  what  has  Balaam  Griggs  got  on  you 
that  would  put  you  in  state's  prison?  ...  Eh!  Good 
Lord  above!  Here,  here,  boy,  brace  up;  don't  act  that 
way!" 

For  Joe,  after  a  gasp  and  a  momentary  stare  at  his 
questioner,  had  gone  suddenly  white  and  collapsed  side 
ways  upon  a  heap  of  empty  boxes.  Captain  Noah  pulled 
him  to  his  feet,  but  he  seized  the  captain  by  the  arm  and 
broke  into  a  torrent  of  pleadings  and  protestations. 

"I  didn't,"  he  cried,  "I  didn't.  It  wasn't  my  fault, 
Cap'n  Newcomb,  I  swear  it  wasn't.  I  lost  it;  I  didn't 
steal  it.  Don't  let  him  put  me  in  prison.  I  didn't  do  it, 
Cap'n  Newcomb,  I " 

Noah  put  a  hand  on  the  boy's  trembling  shoulder  and 
patted  it  soothingly. 

"There,  there,  Joe,"  he  said.  "There,  there!  Buck 
up ;  be  a  man.  I  don't  doubt  you  didn't  do  it,  whatever 
it  was,  and  I  ain't  accusin'  you  of  anything.  I'm  here  to 
help  you,  and  so  I  want  you  to  tell  me  the  truth,  that's 
all,  just  the  truth  and  nothin'  else.  There's  nothin'  to  be 
afraid  of.  For  all  we  know,  this  may  be  the  first  tack 

298 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

towards  that  ranch  of  yours.  Anyhow,  it  ain't  towards 
prison,  I  give  you  my  word  for  that.  I'm  goin'  to  be 
your  friend,  Joe,  if  you'll  give  me  the  chance.  Come  on, 
now ;  spin  your  yarn." 

And  after  a  time,  and  little  by  little,  Joe  spun  it. 


CHAPTER   XVIII 

MISS  BARSTOW  had  not  exaggerated  in  telling 
Captain  Noah  Newcomb  that  her  stepfather  was 
"cross."  For  a  period  of  several  weeks  Ba 
laam  had  been  as  ugly  as  sin  and  woe  betide  the  un 
lucky  individual  upon  whom  he  could  safely  vent  his 
spite  and  ill  humor.  During  those  weeks  he  had  almost 
entirely  given  over  his  habit  of  dropping  in  at  the  Bur 
gess  house  for  a  meal,  and  he  and  Captain  Newcomb 
had  seen  comparatively  little  of  each  other.  Their  talks 
concerning  Trumet  real  estate  had  almost  entirely 
ceased.  The  captain  had  not  seen  fit  to  purchase  any 
of  the  "bargains"  pointed  out  to  him  by  his  enterpris 
ing  friend,  and  the  latter  had  about  reached  the  con 
clusion  that  he  never  intended  doing  so.  But  he  had 
not  entirely  given  up  hope ;  Balaam  seldom  did  give  up 
all  hope  where  a  trade  was  involved. 

During  the  period  of  his  "crossness" — that  immedi 
ately  preceding  and  following  the  departure  of  Mr.  Cal 
vin  Wentworth  for  New  York— Mr.  Griggs  had  avoided 
the  captain's  society  just  as  he  avoided  that  of  Obadiah 
Burgess  and  other  business  "friends."  He  was  in  the 
depths  of  gloom.  The  knowledge  that  the  debonair 
Wentworth  shared  his  secret  concerning  Ira  Barstow's 

300 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

will,  and  the  forebodings  which  that  knowledge  entailed, 
prevented  his  enjoying  companionship.  Cousin  Calvin 
had  already  "borrowed"  two  hundred  dollars  on  the 
strength  of  that  secret.  Balaam  foresaw  a  dismal  fu 
ture  replete  with  similar  borrowings.  His  money  was 
as  much  a  part  of  him  as  his  skin,  and  to  be  skinned 
a  little  at  a  time  was  an  exceedingly  painful  process.  He 
had  felt  the  first  pangs  already  in  reality.  He  was  feel 
ing  the  others  in  anticipation.  No  wonder  he  was  de 
spondent  and  out  of  sorts. 

But  when  another  week  began  and  Mr.  Wentworth 
did  not  return  from  the  metropolis  Balaam's  spirits  be 
gan  to  revive.  There  was  no  real  reason  for  this  revival, 
in  his  moments  of  serious  reflection  he  realized  that 
there  was  not;  but  he  was  more  optimistic  and  began  to 
cherish  a  faint  hope.  As  the  week  drew  on  to  its  close 
and  still  there  was  no  sign  of  the  missing  society  leader 
the  hope  became  stronger.  Something  might  have  hap 
pened,  some  accident  perhaps.  Balaam  had  been  in  New 
York  but  twice  during  his  lifetime,  but  his  memories 
of  the  Broadway  throngs  were  acute.  He  knew  that 
he,  himself,  had  been  in  momentary  fear  of  being  run 
over;  perhaps  Cousin  Calvin  had  been  run  over.  At  the 
thought  his  countenance  was  contorted  with  emotion, 
which  may  or  may  not  have  been  grief.  Perhaps — this 
was  another  happy  supposition — perhaps  the  missing  one 
had  committeed  some  crime,  such,  for  instance,  as  re 
quisitioning  two  hundred  dollars  from  the  earnings  of  a 
hard-working,  frugal  man,  and  had  been  arrested.  Or — 
But  never  mind  Balaam's  other  guesses  and  hopes,  there 
were  several,  but  the  sum  of  each  and  all  was  that,  for 

301 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

a  reason  unknown,  Calvin  Wentworth  might — might  be 
permanently  detained  in  New  York.  Of  course,  common 
sense  told  him  this  was  not  in  the  least  likely  to  be 
true,  but  he  dared  to  hope  and  to  feel  more  cheerful. 

Another  reason  for  his  improving  temper  was  the  fact 
that  his  stepdaughter  was  giving  him  so  little  trouble. 
He  had  expected  grief,  tears  and  deep  despondency  when 
Irving  Clifford  was  "exposed"  and  sent  about  his 
business.  For  a  day  or  two  Mary  had  been  very  pale 
and  quiet,  but  only  for  a  day  or  two.  After  that  she  had 
perked  up  amazingly  and  had  been  as  merry  and,  to  all 
appearances,  as  happy  as  she  had  ever  been.  Then 
Cousin  Calvin  came  and  went.  While  he  was  here  she 
had  seemed  to  enjoy  his  society,  but  now  that  he  had 
gone  she  was  not  mourning  for  him,  that  was  evident. 
Balaam  was  forced  to  believe  that  she  really  cared  noth 
ing  for  him,  that  she  had  cared  little  or  nothing  for 
Clifford,  that  she  was,  in  short,  a  heart-free  young  lady, 
which,  according  to  his  view,  was  precisely  what  a  step 
daughter  with  twenty-five  thousand  dollars  in  his  care 
and  unaware  of  it,  should  be.  And,  to  add  to  his  satis 
faction,  not  once  during  the  past  fortnight  or  more  had 
she  mentioned  the  idea  of  going  to  Boston  to  earn  her 
own  living. 

This  particular  morning  she  appeared  to  be  in  the  high 
est  spirits,  singing  at  her  housework  in  the  kitchen  and 
rattling  the  dishes  with  brisk  cheerfulness.  Balaam,  out 
in  the  shed,  rubbing  with  oil  the  battered  panels  of  an 
antique  dresser,  heard  her  and  grinned.  The  dresser 
was  a  new  purchase ;  he  had  paid  four  dollars  and  a  half 
for  it  and  believed  he  could  sell  it  for  thirty  at  least, 

302 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

so  he  felt  that  he  could  afford  to  grin.  Incidentally  Mary's 
cheerfulness  was  a  happy  augury.  If  that  Wentworth 
fellow  did  come  back;  or,  at  the  worst,  when  he  came 
back,  he  might  find  all  his  society  wiles  useless.  Plainly 
Miss  Barstow  did  not  care  two  cents  for  him.  Of  course 
this  did  not  change  the  distressing  fact  that  Wentworth 
knew  of  the  Barstow  will,  but — well,  it  was  some  com 
fort,  nevertheless. 

Mary's  singing  suddenly  ceased.  So  did  the  rattle  of 
the  dishes.  A  few  minutes  later  Balaam,  through  the 
shed  window,  saw  her  coming  across  the  yard.  Her  eyes 
were  shining,  her  cheeks  were  flushed  and  she  seemed 
elated  and  excited  about  something.  Incidentally,  a  sus 
ceptible  person — Irving  Clifford,  for  instance — might 
have  thought  her  wonderfully  pretty.  Balaam  did  not 
notice;  he  was  not  susceptible. 

She  came  to  the  open  door  of  the  shed. 

"Mr.  Griggs !"  she  called.  "Oh,  there  you  are !  Cap'n 
Newcomb  is  here.  He  wants  to  see  you." 

Balaam  looked  at  her,  questioningly.  "Who?  Noah 
Newcomb?"  he  repeated.  "What  does  he  want  to  see 
me  for?" 

"He  didn't  say,  except  that  it  was  a  matter  of  busi 
ness." 

"Business,  eh?     What  business?" 

"He  didn't  say,  I  tell  you.  Aren't  you  going  to  see 
him?" 

Mr.  Griggs  reflected.  The  only  business  Captain  New- 
comb  could  possibly  wish  to  discuss  with  him  would  be 
that  involving  those  real  estate  "bargains."  Perhaps — 

303 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

yes,  doubtless  the  captain  had  decided  to  trade  at  last. 
He  threw  down  the  oil  rag  and  turned  to  the  door. 

"I'll  be  right  out,"  he  said.     "Where  is  he?" 

"At  the  front  gate.  He  is  in  his  car.  I  asked  him  to 
get  out,  but  he  wouldn't." 

"Humph!  All  right."  Then,  watching  for  the  first 
time  the  young  lady's  manner,  he  asked :  "What  are  you 
so  lively  and  chirky  about?  Look  as  if  you'd  had  good 
news.  WThat  is  it ;  anybody  left  you  a  million  ?" 

This  last  was  a  slip  of  the  tongue,  for  any  mention  of 
a  legacy  was  decidedly  dangerous.  But  of  this  danger 
Miss  Barstow  was,  of  course,  quite  unaware.  She 
laughed  merrily. 

"Oh,  no,"  she  replied;  "nothing  like  that  I  am  en 
joying  this  weather,  that  is  all.  Did  you  ever  see  such 
a  marvelous  day?  It  is  as  if  it  were  made  on  purpose." 

"On  purpose  for  what?"  demanded  Balaam.  She 
seemed  startled  and  oddly  confused  for  an  instant,  then 
laughed  again  and  said: 

"Oh,  for  nothing  in  particular,  I  suppose;  just  for  us 
all.  But  you  must  hurry.  Cap'n  Newcomb  is  waiting." 

The  captain  was  on  the  seat  of  the  "Panhard."  He 
hailed  Mr.  Griggs  cheerfully. 

"Morning  Balaam,"  he  said.  "Busy  this  forenoon,  are 
you?" 

Balaam  looked  at  him  over  his  spectacles. 

"I'm  most  generally  busy,  or  cal'late  to  be,"  he  ob 
served.  "But  I  ain't  too  busy  to  talk  with  my  friends, 
especially  such  a  friend  as  you  be,  Cap'n.  What  can  I 
do  for  you  today?" 

Captain  Noah  smiled  genially.    "Well,  I  was  kind  of 

304 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

hopin'  you'd  feel  like  takin'  a  cruise  along  with  me  in  the 
Pancake  here,"  he  replied.     "Eh?     How  about  it?" 

Mr.  Griggs  looked  doubtful.  "I'm  pretty  busy,  same 
as  I  said,"  he  declared.  "I  like  automobile  ridin'  first- 
rate — you  know  that,  Cap'n  Newcomb." 

The  captain  nodded.  "Wentworth  said  you  was  crazy 
about  it,"  he  observed. 

Balaam  glanced  suspiciously  at  the  speaker.  "Oh,  he 
told  you  I  went  along  with  him,  did  he?"  he  asked. 

"Yes,  he  happened  to  mention  it.  Said  you  and  he 
went  over  to  Ostable  together,  I  believe." 

"He  did,  eh?  I  want  to  know!  Did  he  tell  you  any 
particulars  about  the  trip?" 

The  question  was  asked  with  an  elaborate  air  of  inno 
cence,  and  it  was  answered  with  one  just  as  childlike  and 
bland. 

"No,"  said  the  captain.  "I  believe  he  did  say  some- 
thin'  about  your  havin'  the  time  of  your  life." 

"Is  that  so!"  with  righteous  indignation.  "Do  tell! 
The  time  of  my  life !  I  tell  you  right  now  a  few  more 
of  them  times  and  I  wouldn't  have  any  life.  You  never 
see  such  divilish  fool  drivin'  in  all  your  born  days. 
Crazy,  reckless  lunatic!  Says  I,  'You  never  missed  that 
post  by  more'n  two  inches/  'What  of  it?'  says  he. 
'  'Tain't  your  post,  is  it  ?'  Did  you  ever  hear  such  loony 
talk  in  your  life?  What  in  time  did  I  care  whose  post 
'twas?" 

Captain  Noah  laughed  heartily.  "I  shan't  drive  you 
that  way,  Balaam,"  he  said.  "Better  come  along  with 
me.  I've  got  a  little  matter  of  business  I  want  to  talk 
over  with  you." 

305 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

Mr.  Griggs  appeared  to  consider.  "Business,  eh?"  he 
repeated.  "Where  was  you  cal'latin'  to  ride  to,  Capn'?" 

"  Oh,  I  don't  know.  Down  Trumet  Neck  way,  I 
shouldn't  wonder." 

The  real  estate  "bargains"  were,  some  of  them,  located 
at  Trumet  Neck.  Balaam  twisted  a  side  whisker  reflec 
tively.  "Wa-al,"  he  drawled,  "I  presume  likely  I  could 
go.  Little  mite  of  time  off  wouldn't  do  me  no  harm,  as  I 
know  of.  I — er —  Why,  yes,  Cap'n,  I'll  go,  seein'  a-s 
it's  you." 

He  hurried  into  the  house  for  his  hat.  Captain  Noah 
regarded  the  center  of  the  wind-shield  and,  apparently, 
found  something  amusing  there,  for  he  smiled. 

The  little  car  buzzed  through  Trumet  and  off  along 
the  South  Trumet  road  to  the  junction  of  the  road  lead 
ing  to  Trumet  Neck.  This  thoroughfare  was  merely 
"oiled"  not  macadamed,  and  was  therefore  somewhat 
bumpy,  but  it  was  an  asphalted  parkway  for  smooth 
ness  compared  to  the  byway  into  which  they  presently 
turned.  This  was  a  narrow  rutted  lane  through  the 
woods  and  wound  and  twisted  on  through  a  desolate 
wilderness  of  scrub  pines,  beach  plum  brushes  and  sandy 
nothingness.  Balaam,  who  had  never  traveled  its  jolty 
windings  before,  rattled  loose  a  question. 

"Wha — wha — what  are  you  tu-turn —  Ugh!  God 
freys,  what  a  bump  that  was? —  What  are  you  tur — 
Ugh ! — turnin'  in  here  for  ?  This  don't  go  to  the —  Ugh ! 
—Neck,  does  it?" 

"Short  cut,"  replied  the  captain.  "Hang  on,  Balaam. 
'Tis  kind  of  rough  over  the  rips  here,  ain't  it." 

It  surely  was.     Mr.  Griggs'  few  remaining  teeth  bade 

306 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

fair  to  leave  him  before  that  ride  was  at  an  end.  And 
the  road,  or  roads — for  the  captain  kept  turning  from 
one  to  the  other  of  the  narrow  overgrown  tracks — seemed 
to  have  no  end.  Half  a  dozen  times  the  passenger  started 
to  ask  where  on  earth  they  were  bound,  but  each  time 
his  pilot  merely  grunted  "Short  cut"  or  "You'll  see 
pretty  soon,"  and  centered  all  his  energies  on  the  steer 
ing.  Griggs  gave  it  up  finally,  but  he  mentally  vowed 
to  add  at  least  ten  dollars  to  the  price  of  whichever  bar 
gain  Captain  Newcomb  decided  to  buy,  as  a  salve  for  his 
own  bruised  feelings  and  person. 

At  last  the  car  jounced  out  of  the  woods  and  into  a 
small  clearing.  There  was  a  house  in  the  clearing,  a  low 
shingled  building,  evidently  unoccupied.  Between  the 
pines  behind  the  house  shone  a  gleam  of  sunlit  water. 

Balaam  stared  at  the  house  and  its  surroundings. 
"Where  in  time  are  we?"  he  demanded  in  astonishment. 
'This  ain't  the  Neck,  is  it?  I  don't  remember  no  place 
like  this  at  the  Neck." 

Captain  Noah  laughed.  "The  Neck?"  he  repeated. 
"We  ain't  within  five  miles  of  the  Neck.  This  is  Howell 
Winslow's  shootin'  camp  over  at  East  Wellmouth.  That's 
the  bay  you  see  out  yonder.  His  duck  blinds  are  over 
at  the  pond  a  hundred  yards  in  the  other  direction.  You'd 
never  do  to  go  to  sea  without  a  compass,  Balaam,  if  you 
can't  guess  your  latitude  any  nigher  than  to  call  this 
place  the  Neck." 

Mr.  Griggs  continued  to  stare.  "But  you  said  you  was 
goin'  to  the  Neck,"  he  declared  in  bewilderment.  "What 
in  time  did  you  lug  me  way  over  here  for?" 

The  captain  grinned,  "I  told  you  I  might  go  to  the 

307 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

Neck,"  he  said,  "but  I  came  here  instead.  Howell  left 
the  key  to  this  place  with  Irve  Clifford  last  spring  and 
told  Irve  to  use  it  if  he  wanted  to.  Irve  turned  the  keys 
over  to  me  when  he  went  away,  and  so  I  thought  I'd 
have  a  look.  I've  only  been  here  once  before,  with  Irve, 
but  I  found  my  way  pretty  well,  don't  you  think  ?  Come 
on,  Balaam,  let's  go  inside." 

He  sprang  out  of  the  automobile  and  slowly  his  pas 
senger  followed  him.  Mr.  Griggs'  disappointment  was 
keen. 

"I  thought  you  said  you  wanted  to  talk  business  with 
me,"  he  grumbled.  "I  didn't  know  you  was  goin'  to 
cruise  way  over  here  just  to  look  at  a  shootin'  camp.  I 
told  you  I  was  pretty  busy  to  home  and " 

Noah  interrupted.  "There,  there,"  he  said.  "Who 
said  we  weren't  goin'  to  talk  business?  Not  me,  sartin. 
This  camp's  for  sale.  You  knew  that,  didn't  you,  Ba 
laam?" 

Mr.  Griggs  had  known  it,  but  had  forgotten.  Now, 
as  the  fact  was  called  to  his  attention,  his  spirits  revived. 
Perhaps  Newcomb  was  thinking  of  buying  the  Winslow 
camp,  and  had  brought  him  along  as  a  consulting  expert. 
In  his  mind's  eye  Balaam  saw  a  prospective  liberal  com 
mission  to  be  paid  him  by  Mr.  Winslow. 

"Let's  go  inside  and  look  her  over,"  he  said,  blithely. 
"Pretty  fancy  lookin'  buildin'  outside,  seems  to  me. 
Feller  that  bought  this  outfit  at  a  reasonable  rigger 
wouldn't  make  no  mistake.  No  sir-ee,  he  wouldn't." 

His  companion  did  not  answer,  but  led  the  way  over 
to  the  building.  It  was  not  "fancy"  exactly,  but  it  was 
pleasant  and  summery  in  a  rough  way,  although  the  shut- 

308 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

ters  were  up  at  the  windows  and  the  doors  locked.  The 
captain  took  a  key  from  his  pocket,  unlocked  the  door 
and  went  in.  A  moment  later  he  reappeared,  having 
loosened  the  fastenings  of  two  of  the  shutters,  and  pro 
ceeded  to  swing  those  shutters  open. 

"There,"  he  said.  "Now  we  can  see  something  1  car- 
late.  Come  in,  Balaam." 

He  and  Mr.  Griggs  entered  the  living  room  of  the 
camp.  Balaam,  staring  about  him  at  the  big  fireplace, 
the  heavy  table  and  chairs,  did  not  notice  what  his  com 
panion  was  doing.  Therefore  he  did  not  see  the  latter 
lock  the  door  on  the  inside  and  put  the  key  in  his  pocket. 

The  captain  walked  over  to  the  big  table,  took  a 
(memorandum  book  and  a  small  packet  of  papers  from 
inside  his  coat  and  tossed  them  on  the  table  before  him. 
Then  he  sighed  contentedly  and  produced  and  lighted  a 
cigar. 

"Have  one,  Balaam?"  he  inquired.  "Sho!  No, 
course  you  won't.  I  forgot  you  was  too  moral  to  smoke. 
Well,  here  we  are,  snug  and  quiet  and  where  nobody  can 
interrupt  us.  What  do  you  say  if  we  talk  business?" 

There  was  an  odd  note  in  his  voice  which  Mr.  Griggs 
did  not  understand.  He  looked  at  the  captain's  face,  then 
at  the  papers  on  the  table. 

"What's  them?"  he  demanded. 

Captain  Noah  smiled.  "Those  are  part  of  the  busi 
ness  I  brought  you  over  here  to  talk  about,"  he  said. 
"It's  liable  to  be  a  pretty  long  talk,  so  sit  down,  Ba 
laam." 

Balaam  looked  at  the  captain's  face  and  then  at  the 
papers  once  more. 

309 


EXTRICATING  OBADIAH 

"What's  them,  I  ask  you?"  he  repeated. 

"Sit  down  and  I'll  tell  you.     Sit  down." 

Mr.  Griggs  sat.  The  captain  took  up  one  of  the  slips 
of  paper  and  glanced  at  it. 

"Balaam,"  he  said,  "as  nigh  as  I  can  figger  it  out  you 
claimed  Melissa  Mayo — or  Joe  Kenney,  which  is  the  same 
thing — owed  you  twelve  hundred  and  fifty  dollars  in  the 
beginning  didn't  you?" 

Balaam's  eyes  and  mouth  opened.  He  leaned  back  in 
his  chair,  his  face  white  and  red  by  turns. 

"That's  what  'twas,  twelve  hundred  and  fifty,  wan't 
it?"  repeated  Noah,  calmly.  "Twelve  hundred  and  fifty 
was  the  amount  Joe  collected  for  you  in  Gloucester  that 
time  and  then  lost." 

Balaam's  lips  moved,  but  he  did  not  say  anything. 
The  captain  continued. 

"The  way  I  got  the  yarn  from  Joe,"  he  said,  "it  hap 
pened  about  like  this — I  wish  you'd  tell  me  if  I'm  wrong 
anywhere:  Two  years  ago  or  more  you  owned  some 
shares  in  a  fishin*  vessel  and  sold  'em  out  to  a  feller  in 
Gloucester.  He  was  to  give  you  his  check  on  a  certain 
day  and  you  was  goin'  up  to  Gloucester  and  get  it  and 
close  up  the  deal.  A  week  afore  that  day  came  you  was 
sick  in  bed  with  rheumatism — sshh !  don't  interrupt  for 
a  minute.  If  I'm  wrong  you  tell  me  afterwards — so, 
bein'  sick,  you  wrote  to  Melissa  Mayo,  your  cousin  up 
to  Pigeon  Cove,  and  asked  her  to  go  over  and  see  this 
Gloucester  man  on  the  day  appointed  and  get  the  check 
or  the  money,  whichever  'twas  to  be.  She  couldn't  go 
so  she  sent  Joe.  Joe  went  and  the  feller  paid  him  cash. 

Then  somehow  or  other  Joe  lost  the  money " 

310 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

Balaam's  face  was  no  longer  pale.  It  was  a  flaming 
red.  He  sprang  to  his  feet. 

"Lost  it!"  he  shouted.  "He  stole  it,  and  he  knows 
darned  well  he  did.  .  .  .  But  that  don't  make  no  differ 
ence,  not  to  you  it  don't.  What  are  you  talkin'  to  me 
about  Joe  Kenney's  thievin'  for?  Did  you  cart  me  over 
here  to  talk  about  that?" 

The  captain  blew  a  cloud  of  cigar  smoke  and  nodded. 

"Um-hm,"  he  said,  "that  and  some  other  things." 

"You  did?  You  did?  Was  that  the  'business7  you 
had  along  of  me?" 

"Um-hm.     That  and  the  rest  of  it." 

Mr.  Griggs  stared  at  him  suspiciously.  "Is  this — is 
this  some  kind  of  a  comical  joke  or  somethin'?"  he  de 
manded. 

"Nary  a  comic,  Balaam.  I  brought  you  over  here  on 
purpose  to  talk  about  your  dealin's  with  Melissy — her 
and  some  other  folks." 

Balaam  started  for  the  door. 

"You  go  to  thunder,"  he  snarled. 

"Maybe  I  will  later  on.  Where  are  you  cal'latin'  to 
go  just  now?  You  won't  go  far  that  way,  the  door's 
locked." 

It  was  locked,  and  so  Mr.  Griggs  found.  He  hastened 
to  the  two  remaining  doors  leading  from  the  room  and 
found  them  locked  also. 

"Don't  waste  your  time,  Balaam,"  counseled  Noah, 
serenely.  "You  won't  get  out  of  here  until  you  and  I 
have  had  this  talk.  That's  why  I  brought  you  over  here, 
five  mile  away  from  the  rest  of  creation,  so  we  could 
have  it  without  anybody's  else  buttin'  in  or  you're  but- 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

tin'  out.  Now  sit  down  like  a  sensible  man  and  listen. 
Ill  hurry  all  I  can." 

"By  godfreys,  Newcomb,  you  unlock  that  door!" 

"I'll  unlock  it  pretty  soon,  Balaam.  Soon  as  you  and 
me  have  finished  this  business  talk." 

"I'll — I'll  have  you  took  up.  I'll  have  you  put  in  jail 
for  this." 

"All  right.  But  while  we're  waitin'  for  the  constable 
let's  have  our  talk  out.  Coin'  on  with  my  story  now: 
Joe,  he  lost  the  twelve  hundred  and  fifty " 

"That's  a  lie.     He  stole  it  and  then  run  away." 

"He  says  he  lost  it  and  then  ran  away  because  he  was 
afraid  to  tell  you  he  had  lost  it." 

"He  lies.  Besides,  it  ain't  none  of  your  affairs,  Noah 
Newcomb.  You  open  that  door." 

"Pretty  soon,  pretty  soon.  Even  if  I  did  open  it  you 
wouldn't  gain  any  time.  The  only  way  to  get  out  of 
here,  except  in  my  car,  is  to  walk,  and  'twould  take  you 
lots  longer  to  walk  six  or  seven  mile  home  than  our 
little  talk'll  take.  Now  suppose  we  don't  argue  about 
this  not  bein'  my  affairs.  I  know  it  ain't  as  well  as  you 
do,  but  you  can't  have  lived  in  Trumet  all  your  life 
without  realizin'  it's  human  nature  to  love  to  talk  about 
other  folk's  private  business.  Eh?  Ho,  ho!" 

He  chuckled.  Balaam  did  not  chuckle.  He  looked  as 
if  he  could  have  committed  murder  cheerfully,  provided 
it  could  be  committed  without  danger  to  himself. 

"Regardin'  that  question  of  stealin',"  continued  the  cap 
tain,  scratching  a  match  on  the  sole  of  his  shoe  and  re 
lighting  his  cigar,  "I  wrote  to  the  chief  of  police  up  to 
Gloucester  and  he  writes  me  that  there  wasn't  a  particle 

312 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

of  real  evidence  that  Joe  took  it.  The  boy  did  run  away, 
but  he  was  scared  pretty  nigh  to  death,  and  when  they 
caught  him  he  hadn't  a  cent  on  him.  The  chief  seems 
to  think  the  most  likely  thing  is  that  some  of  the  tough 
gang  around  the  wharves  knew  Joe  had  been  paid  the 
money  and  that  the  youngster's  pocket  was  picked.  He 
says  he  told  you  that,  but  that  you  wouldn't  have  it  so. 
You  was  all  for  havin'  the  poor  chap  put  in  prison. 
Now " 

Mr.  Griggs  interrupted.  He  turned  away  from  the 
door,  strode  back  to  the  table,  jerked  the  chair  to  its 
feet  again  and  sat  down.  Then,  looking  Captain  Noah 
straight  in  the  eye,  he  said,  defiantly:  "Well,  what  of 
it?" 

"What  of  it?    What  of  what?" 

"What  if  I  was  goin'  to  have  him  put  in  prison? 
What  if  it's  all  true — except  that  about  his  losin'  the 
money?  What  if  he  did  steal  twelve  hundred  and  fifty 
dollars  from  me?  What  of  it?  You've  got  me  here 
tinder  false  pretenses ;  you're  keepin'  me  shut  up  here 
against  my  will ;  I'm  goin'  to  sue  you  for  damages.  All 
that  I  know  is  goin'  to  happen.  What  I  don't  know  is 
what  is  all  this  stuff  about  Joe  Kenney's  thievin'  is  lead- 
in'  up  to?" 

He  emphasized  his  points  with  thumps  of  his  fist. 
The  captain  was  absolutely  serene. 

"Well,"  he  observed,  "it's  leadin'  up  to  two  or  three 
things.  To  begin  with  you  made  Mrs.  Mayo  and  Joe 
think  you  could  put  the  boy  in  prison  and  would  unless 
the  money  was  paid  back  to  you.  Ain't  that  so?" 

"None  of  your  business." 

313 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

"And  so  she  agreed  to  pay  you,  and  has  been  payin* 
you  two  dollars  a  week  for  a  period  of — say — about  thirty 
tmonths — or,  we'll  call  it,  one  hundred  and  twenty-five 
weeks ;  that's  two  hundred  and  fifty  dollars.  She's  paid 
that  on  the  principal,  ain't  she — or  about  that?  Eh?" 

"None  of  your  business." 

"Besides  that  she's  been  payin'  you,  I  understand,  ten 
per  cent  interest  on  the  whole  amount,  payin'  it  right 
along,  not  takin'  out  any  for  what  principal  she's  paid. 
Is  that  so?" 

"None  of  your  business,  I  told  you.  If  that  fool- 
head  Melissy  Mayo  has  been  tellin'  lies  about  me " 

"She  ain't.  And,"  the  captain's  voice  did  not  rise, 
but  there  was  a  new  and  icy  quality  in  it,  "if  I  was  you, 
Balaam,  I  wouldn't  call  that  lady  names.  For  one  rea 
son  they  ain't  deserved  and  for  another  they  might  not 
be — well,  healthy  for  you.  I  hope  you  understand  that. 
I'd  like  to  have  this  talk  of  ours  just  a  quiet,  sociable — er 
— argument.  I'm  goin'  to  keep  my  part  of  it  that  way  if 
I  possibly  can.  But — but  you  must  do  your  part.  If 
you've  got  to  call  somebody  names  call  me ;  I  don't  mind 
—much." 

He  chuckled,  his  good  humor  apparently  restored.  Ba 
laam  glowered  at  him,  but  said  nothing. 

"She's  paid  you  the  ten  per  cent  on  the  whole  amount 
for  thirty  months,"  went  on  Noah.  "That's  three  hun 
dred  and  twelve  dollars  and  a  half,  there  or  thereabouts, 
as  I  make  it.  Just  check  me  up  as  I  go  along,  won't 
you,  please." 

Mr.  Griggs  did  not  answer.  If  he  wars  "checking  up" 
he  displayed  no  external  evidence  of  the  process. 

314 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

"That's  five  hundred  and  sixty-two  dollars  and  fifty 
cents  actual  cash  she's  paid  you  so  far,"  continued  the 
captain.  "It's  come  pretty  hard  to  pay,  too,  I  guess 
likely.  Hard  afore  you  made  her  come  down  here  to 
do  housework  for  Obe  Burgess  and  help  you  skin 
him " 

"By  godfreys,  Noah  Newcomb,  if  there's  any  law  in 
this  state  I'll  have  it  onto  you." 

"There's  law,  Balaam,  plenty  of  it.  Maybe  we'll  talk 
about  it  later  on.  However,  just  now  we'll  talk  about 
this  money  business  between  you  and  Melissy  Mayo. 
And  hard  after  she  come,  as  I  was  just  goin'  to  say. 
A  spell  ago  you  wanted  to  know  what  all  this  was  leadin' 
up  to.  Perhaps  now  is  as  good  a  time  as  any  to  tell  you. 
I'm  cal'latin',  provided  you  and  I  can  make  a  reasonable 
dicker,  to  take  over  this  Melissy  Mayo  debt,  as  you 
call  it." 

Mr.  Griggs  certainly  had  not  expected  this.  His  eyes 
opened. 

"Take  it  over?"  he  repeated.     "Take  what  over?" 

"This  debt  you  claim  Melissy  owes  you.  Cause  I  doubt 
if  she  owes  you  anything,  and  I'm  pretty  sure  you  couldn't 
prove  anything  against  Joe  Kenney.  But  all  this  time 
you've  been  scarin'  the  two  of  'em  almost  to  death  with 
threats  of  state's  prison,  and  rather  than  have  that  go 
on  any  further  I'll  take  over  the  balance  of  the  debt." 

"You'll  take  it  over?  You  will?  You  mean  you'll  pay 
me  the  rest  of  it?" 

"Yes." 

"For  thunder  sakes,  why?" 

21  315 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

"Oh,  just  because.  That's  as  good  a  reason  as  I  can 
give  you." 

Balaam  shook  his  head.  "Tut,  tut,  tut !"  he  exclaimed. 
"If  this  don't — !  Do  you  mean  you'll  pay  the  twelve 
hundred  and  fifty  to  me  and — and  do  it  as  a  favor  to 
her?" 

"Not  exactly.  I'll  pay  the  balance  of  your  claim,  get 
your  receipt  for  it  free  and  clear,  and  then — well,  then 
Melissy,  or  Joe,  can  owe  it  to  me  instead  of  you." 

"I  want  to  know !  I  cal'late  you  think  they'd  rather 
owe  it  to  you  than  me,  eh?" 

"Shouldn't  wonder." 

"Huh!  Say,  what's  the  matter  with  you?  Are  you 
gettin'  stuck  on  Melissy?  Cal'latin'  to  marry  her,  are 
you?" 

Captain  Noah's  face  was  by  nature  florid,  now  it  was 
more  than  that.  His  chin  quivered,  but  he  seemed  to 
find  speaking  difficult.  Balaam  laughed  raucously. 

"Haw,  haw !"  he  crowed.  "Well,  there's  no  fool  like  an 
old  fool.  If  this  don't " 

"Shut  up !"  The  captain's  command  was  given  with  a 
crisp  crack  like  the  snap  of  a  whip.  "Balaam,"  he  said, 
"I'd  hate  to  make  that  figgerhead  of  yours  any  uglier,  but 
— you  take  my  advice  and  shut  up.  .  .  .  I'm  helpin'  Mrs. 
Mayo  out,"  he  went  on,  after  a  moment,  "just  as  I'd  be 
glad  to  help  any  decent,  self-respectin'  person  out  of  the 
claws  of  a  feller  like  you.  You  knew  she  thought  as 
much  of  that  nephew  of  hers  as  if  he  were  her  own.  You 
knew  she  promised  her  sick  sister  that  she'd  look  out  for 
him.  You  knew  it  and  yet  you  could  take  advantage  of 
jt  to —  But  there,  we  must  stick  to  our  argument  and  not 

316 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

get  complimentary.  I'd  just  love  to  pay  you  compliments 
for  the  rest  of  the  afternoon,  but  I  haven't  got  time.  I've 
got  to  get  back  home  by  noon  or  thereabouts.  I've  got  a 
particular  engagement.  Some  friends  of  mine  are  goin' 
to  be  married  over  in  Bayport  and  I've  promised  to  be 
there." 

He  chuckled  as  he  said  it.  "I  wouldn't  miss  that  wed- 
din'  for  anything,"  he  added.  "Not  even  for  the  pleas 
ure  of  your  company,  Balaam." 

Mr.  Griggs  scowled.  "My  time's  a  little  mite  valu 
able,  too,"  he  sneered.  "I  ain't  hankerin'  to  sit  here 
and  listen  to  your  hot  air.  What  have  you  got  to  say 
to  me?  What  offer  have  you  got  to  make?  Mind  I 
don't  say  I'll  take  it,  but  I'll  hear  it." 

"  'Specially  as  the  door's  locked,  eh  ?  All  right. 
You've  had  two  hundred  and  fifty  of  the  twelve  fifty. 
Melissy's  paid  you  that  on  the  principal.  That  leaves 
a  thousand.  You  acknowledge  that?" 

"I  don't  acknowledge  nothin';  but  she  paid  it  to  me." 

"Yes — well,  that's  almost  as  good  as  an  acknowledg 
ment.  Then  she's  paid  you  three  hundred  and  twelve- 
fifty  interest.  I  might  quibble  about  payin'  interest  on 
the  whole  amount  when  she  was  payin'  it  off  every  week, 
but  we'll  let  that  go.  But  ten  per  cent — ten  per  cent, 
Balaam,  is  too  much,  just  four  per  cent  over  the  law 
ful  rate.  So  we'll  deduct  that  extra  four,  call  it  one 
hundred  and  twenty-five  extra  she's  paid  on  the  prin 
cipal,  bringin*  the  debt  down  to  eight  hundred  and  sev 
enty-five." 

Mr.  Griggs  laughed  again.  "Oh,  we'll  do  that,  will 
we?"  he  sneered.  "Well,  we  won't,  I  tell  you  that." 

317 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

The  captain  paid  no  attention  to  the  interruption,  but 
went  serenely  on. 

"That's  eight  seventy-five  left  owin',"  he  said,  "or  you 
pretend  it's  owin'.  Then  there's  the  other  five  hundred, 
that  you  agreed  to  allow  her  when  you  took  over  the 
hundred  shares  of  Ostrich  copper  stock." 

Balaam  gasped.  "Did — did  she  tell  you  about  that, 
too?"  he  sputtered. 

Captain  Noah  shook  his  head.  "She  didn't  tell  me 
much  of  anything,"  he  said,  "although  she  did  speak 
of  the  copper  stock  when  we  was  talkin'  one  time.  But 
she  don't  know  that  I  know  all  about  the  whole  miser 
able  business,  and  she  don't  know  I'm  havin'  this  little 
social  chat  with  you.  If  she  did  I'm  afraid  she'd  feel 
bad,  so  it's  well  she  doesn't,  eh,  Balaam?  Well,  to  get 
along :  We'll  take  off  the  five  hundred ;  that  leaves  three 
hundred  and  seventy-five  of  the  twelve  hundred  and 
fifty.  I'll  give  you  my  check  for  three  hundred  and  sev 
enty-five  in  exchange  for  your  name  at  the  bottom  of 
this." 

He  selected  a  paper  from  those  upon  the  table  and 
handed  it  to  his  companion. 

"What's  this?"  demanded  the  latter. 

"Read  it  and  find  out." 

Mr.  Griggs  adjusted  his  spectacles  and,  holding  the 
paper  with  fingers  that  shook  a  little,  read  what  was 
written  upon  it.  It  was  a  statement  to  the  effect  that 
he,  Balaam  Griggs,  having  been  paid  twelve  hundred  and 
fifty  dollars,  the  entire  amount  which  his  nephew,  Joash 
Kenney,  had  lost  while  collecting  for  him  in  Gloucester 
upon  a  date  named,  acknowledged  receipt  of  that  sum 

318 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

and  relinquished  all  monetary  claim  upon  Joash  Kenney 
or  Melissa  Mayo.  Also  he  expressed  his  belief  in  Joash 
Kenney's  complete  innocence  in  the  affair  and  that  the 
latter  had  lost  the  money  and  not  stolen  it. 

"If  you'll  put  your  John  Hancock  at  the  foot  of  that," 
said  the  captain,  "I'll  make  out  the  check  for  three  sev 
enty-five." 

Balaam's  answer  was  to  toss  the  slip  of  paper  con 
temptuously  back  upon  the  table  and  tip  back  in  his 
chair. 

"You  go  to  thunder,"  he  said  defiantly. 

"Meanin'  you  won't  ^ign?  If  I  was  you  I  would,  Ba 
laam,  I  would  honest.  It's  the  best  proposition  I'm  goin' 
to  give  you  this  forenoon.  The  next  one  won't  be  so 
good,  I  warn  you." 

"You  warn  me?  You  warn  me!  I  warn  you  to  open 
that  door  and  let  me  out  of  here.  As  I  told  you  afore, 
Neah  Newcomb,  you're  meddlin'  with  what  ain't  none 
of  your  affairs  aad  your  keepin'  m«  here  is  a  actionable 
matter." 

"Then  you  won't  talk  trade  with  me?  Dear,  dear!" 
Captain  Noah  seemed  disappointed. 

Mr.  Griggs  noted  the  disappointment  and  grew  more 
triumphant.  "I'M  talk  business  with  any  man,  when  it 
is  business,"  he  said.  "What  Melissy  Mayo  owes  me 
is  my.  affair,  and  she  ain't  goin5  to  gain  nothin'  by  sick- 
in*  you  onto  me.  Not  much  she  ain't.  I  ain't  at  all 
particular  about  eellin'  out  that  debt.  It's  pretty  safe, 
long's  I've  got  my  eye  on  the  two  of  'em,  and  it  pays 
good  interest." 

"  'Good'  is  good,"  broke  in  the  captain  dryly. 

319 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

"However,"  went  on  Balaam,  ignoring  the  interrup 
tion,  'Til  always  sell  anything  if  I  get  enough  for  it, 
that's  a — a  motto,  as  you  might  say,  of  mine.  You  give 
me  your  check  for  a  thousand  dollars — that's  the  twelve 
fifty  less  the  two  fifty  principal  she's  paid — and  I'll  call 
it  square.  Cause  I  won't  sign  no  such  durn  fool  thing 
as  that,"  with  a  jerk  of  the  thumb  towards  the  paper 
he  had  just  thrown  down,  "but  I'll  call  the  debt  paid. 
After  all,  Melissy  and  Joe  are  relations  of  mine,  I  sup 
pose,  and  I'd  like  to  do  the  fair  thing  by  'em." 

Captain  Noah  gazed  at  him  in  a  sort  of  reverent  admi 
ration.  Then  he  slowly  shook  his  head.  "By  the  ever- 
lastin',  Balaam,"  he  exclaimed,  "you  are  a  wonder.  You 
ought  to  be  framed  and  kept  on  the  parlor  whatnot,  you 
had.  Folks  would  pay  money  to  see  you  if  they  knew 
what  I  know.  And  most  of  'em  that  see  much  of  you 
do  pay,  now  that  I  come  to  think  of  it.  Eh?" 

He  smiled,  shook  his  head  once  more,  and  picked  up 
the  paper. 

"So  you  won't  sign  this?"  he  queried. 

"No,  told  you  I  wouldn't.  I  make  it  a  practice  not  to 
sign  much.  Folks  get  into  trouble  signin'  things." 

"That's  right,  so  they  do.  And  sometimes  they  get 
into  trouble  by  not  signin'  'em  when  they  have  the  chance. 
And  you  won't  take  off  the  four  per  cent  interest,  so  as 
to  bring  it  down  to  a  lawful  six?" 

"I  sartin  won't.     Why  should  I?" 

"Well,  anything  above  six  is  against  the  law,  so  they 
tell  me." 

"Runnin'  off  with  stolen  money's  against  the  law,  too. 
And  folks  go  to  prison  for  it — just  whenever  the  charge 

320 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

is  seen  fit  to  be  pressed  against  'em.  And  in  spite  of 
other  nosey  folks  buttin'  in,  too,"  he  added,  venomously. 

"And  how  about  that  five  hundred  you  was  goin'  to 
allow  for  the  Ostrich  stock?  Wouldn't  you  take  that 
off?" 

"No." 

''But  you  told  Melissy  you  would." 

"I  told  her  I  might.  And  maybe  I  will  yet — to  her. 
But  I  shan't  do  it  to  you,  nor  any  other  outsider.  That 
Ostrich  stock  ain't  worth  nothin'  anyhow.  I  only  took 
it  off  her  hands  as  a  kindness,  a  favor,  as  you  might 
say." 

"And  then  you  sold  it  to  Obe  Burgess  for  five 
thousand  dollars.  That  was  another  favor,  I  presume 
likely." 


CHAPTER   XIX 

R.  GRIGGS  was  taken  aback,  even  embarrassed, 
but  he  recovered  quickly.  As  a  matter  of  fact, 
he  had  guessed  what  was  coming.  If  Captain 
Noah  knew  of  the  purchase  of  the  Ostrich  stock  he 
probably  knew  of  its  sale.  So  Balaam  was,  in  a  measure, 
prepared.  But  his  voice  shook  a  little  as  he  answered. 

"Maybe  'twas,  maybe  'twan't,"  he  said,  defiantly. 
"Anyhow,  that  ain't  your  affairs  no  more  than  the  other." 

The  captain  looked  doubtful.  "You're  wrong  there, 
Balaam,"  he  said.  "This  is  my  affair;  fact  is,  it's  the 
affair  that  brought  me  to  Trumet.  Obe  Burgess  and  I 
are  pretty  good  friends.  He  promised  to  call  to  me  for 
help  if  he  ever  got  into  trouble.  He  called  and  I  came. 
That's  why  I'm  here." 

Balaam  looked  surprised  and  rather  discomfited  at  this 
piece  of  news,  but  he  rallied  bravely. 

"I  want  to  know !"  he  sneered.  "So  Burgess  got  cold 
feet  and  hollered  for  you,  did  he?  You're  helpin'  him 
same  as  you  be  Melissy  and  Joe,  eh?  You  seem  to  be 
kind  of  a  general  helper  round  here,  seems  to  me." 

Noah  nodded.  "Just  about  that,"  he  admitted  cheer 
fully.  "As  I  told  a  friend  of  mine  a  spell  ago  I  seem 

322 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

to  have  signed  articles  as  the  Good  Samaritan.  An  old 
shipmate  of  mine,  that's  Obadiah,  had  gone  down  into 
a  fur  country,  like  the  feller  in  the  Bible,  and  fell 
amongst  thieves,  so " 

"Thieves!  Thieves?  Who  do  you  mean  by  thieves, 
Noah  Newcomb?" 

''Well — er — I  don't  know  as  I  mean  anybody.  I  real 
ize  you're  a  moral  man,  Balaam,  so  of  course  you 
wouldn't  steal ;  but  buyin'  chamber  sets  for  ten  or  twelve 
dollars  and  sellin'  'em  for  forty,  and  buyin'  groceries  and 
house  supplies  for  half  again  what  you  sell  'em  for,  and 
buyin'  good-for-nothin'  stocks  for  five  hundred  dollars, 
on  credit,  and  sellin'  'em  for  five  thousand  cash — well,  of 
course  that  ain't  stealin',  maybe,  but  if  I  was  the  feller 
in  a  free  country  I'd  about  as  soon  fall  amongst  thieves 
as  I  would  amongst  them  kind  of  'friends.'  What  do 
you  think?" 

Mr.  Griggs  leaned  over  the  table.  "I  tell  you  what 
I  think,"  he  snarled.  "I  think  you're  a  fresh  nosey, 
same  as  I  said  in  the  beginnin'.  I  did  sell  Obe  Burgess 
them  chamber  sets  and  things.  If  I  bought  'em  cheap 
and  sold  'em  high,  what  of  it?  Ain't  that  my  job?  Ain't 
that  what  I'm  in  business  for?  If  I  see  a  chance  to  get 
that  stock  for  little  or  nothin'  ar»d  sell  it  for — er — more, 
what  of  it  again?  Ain't  that  what's  done  in  the  stock 
exchanges  every  day?  If  your  precious  chum  of  an 
Obe  Burgess  is  a  soft-headed  fool  is  that  my  fault?  I 
know  what  I've  done  and  what  I  ain't  done,  Noah  New- 
comb,  maybe  better  than  you  do.  I'm  a  good,  sharp 
business  man,  if  I  do  say  it.  I'll  make  a  profit  in  a 
trade  every  chance  I  get.  That's  all  I've  done  now,  and 

323 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

I  stump  you  to  lay  one  finger  on  anything  I've  done  that 
ain't  legal.  I  stump  you  to.  You  and  Burgess  and  Me- 
lissy  Mayo  and  all  the  rest  of  'em  can  go  to  thunder. 
Now  you  open  that  door  and  let  me  out." 

He  was  out  of  breath  when  he  finished  and  trembling 
with  nervous  rage.  Captain  Noah,  at  the  other  side  of 
the  table,  was  still  perfectly  calm.  But  now  he  dropped 
his  bantering  drawl  and  spoke  quick  and  sharp. 

"Balaam,"  he  said,  "I  won't  argue  about  the  legal  end 
of  it.  I  know  you're  a  slippery  old  eel  and  a  shrewd  one. 
I  believe  I  could  get  you  found  guilty  of  usury  afore  a 
jury,  but  I  shan't  try.  I  know  if  I  did  you'd  tell  every 
body  that  Joe  Kenney  was  a  thief  and  probably  ruin  his 
chances  and  drive  his  aunt  out  of  town.  So  we  won't 
press  the  ten  per  cent  interest  matter,  not  in  public — not 
now." 

Griggs  laughed.  "I  cal'lated  you  wouldn't,"  he  ob 
served. 

"No,  but  we'll  settle  it  on  my  terms,  those  I  named  to 
you.  And,  as  for  the  Ostrich  stock  deal,  you  might  be 
able  to  squeeze  by  in  a  court  even  on  that,  although  I'd 
risk  but  what  I  could  get  you  for  obtainin'  money  under 
false  pretenses,  showin'  year-old  newspapers  for  new 
ones  and  the  like  of  that.  But,  unless  it's  necessary,  we 
won't  go  to  law  about  the  Ostrich  trade." 

Balaam  laughed  aloud.  "You  remind  me  of  a  loon," 
he  declared.  "A  loon  hollers  like  time,  makes  a  dickens 
of  a  noise,  and  then  ducks  under.  I  admire  the  way 
you  duck,  Newcomb." 

"Thanks.  Well,  I  won't  name  the  critter  you  remind 
me  of,  but  folks  that  are  so  unlucky  as  to  have  any  deal- 

324 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

in's  with  it  generally  bury  their  clothes  when  the  inter 
view's  over.  But  we  wasn't  goin'  to  pass  compliments, 
was  we."  He  looked  at  his  watch  and  added :  "It's  time 
we  was  gettin'  down  to  tacks,  because  I  can't  keep  that 
weddin'  waitin'  much  longer.  Here,"  he  took  up  the 
written  statement  which  Balaam  had  discarded  so  con 
temptuously  ;  "you're  goin'  to  sign  that,"  he  said.  "And 
here,"  taking  a  large  envelope  from  his  pocket,  "is  the 
certificate  for  one  hundred  shares  Ostrich  Minin'  and 
Smeltin'.  There  is  a  power  of  attorney  signed  by  Obe 
Burgess  fastened  to  it,  so  it's  all  ready  for  transfer  back 
to  you.  And  here,"  taking  another  paper  from  the  table, 
"is  a  blank  check  on  the  Trumet  National  Bank.  I  want 
you  to  fill  that  in  for  five  thousand  dollars — and  sign  it. 
When  you  do  that  I'll  hand  you  the  certificate." 

Balaam  glared  at  the  certificate,  the  check,  and  the 
speaker  in  wrathful  amazement. 

"Are  you  plumb  crazy?"  he  demanded. 

"No." 

"And  you  cal'late  I'll  buy  back  that  Ostrich  stock  and 
pay  five  thousand  for  it?" 

"Yup." 

"I'll  see  you  in  hell  first." 

"Um-hm.  Well,  if  I  ever  get  there  you'll  be  about 
the  first  one  I  shall  expect  to  see.  Now  weVe  talked 
enough.  I  believe  I  could  get  you  in  any  court  for  pay- 
in'  and  obtainin'  money  under  false  pretenses.  I  know 
you  could  be  jailed  on  a  criminal  charge  for  cheatin'  Mary 
Barstow  out  of  the  twenty-five  thousand  her  father  left 
her,  and  that  you'd  ought  to  have  turned  over  to  her 
when  she  came  of  age  two  years  ago.  And,  so  sure  as 

325 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

I  live  and  breathe,  I'll  go  to  Mary  and  back  her  in  put- 
tin'  you  behind  the  bars — unless  you  come  to  my  terms 
right  here  and  now." 

Mr.  Griggs,  who  had  risen  to  his  feet  and  was  shaking 
his  fist,  dropped  back  into  the  chair  again.  The  red  left 
his  face.  As  Noah  said  afterwards  he  turned,  not  merely 
white,  but  blue.  He  gurgled  in  his  throat. 

"Well?"  snapped  the  captain.    "What  do  you  say?" 

Balaam,  when  he  could  say  anything,  made  no  at 
tempt  to  deny  the  fact  of  the  legacy  and  the  will.  The 
captain  spoke  with  an  absolute  certainty  which  carried 
conviction  with  it  and  the  uselessness  of  denial  was  up 
permost.  But  he  did  attempt  to  deny  criminal  intent. 

"I — I — I  wasn't  cheatin'  her,"  he  stammered.  "I — I 
was  just  keepin'  it  for  her.  I — I  was  cal'latin'  to  give 
it  to  her.  I  was  all  ready  to  give  it  to  her.  She — she — " 
he  swallowed,  rubbed  his  hand  across  his  wet  forehead 
and  added,  "She  could  have  had  it  by  askin'.  I — I  just 
forgot  to  tell  her,  that's  all." 

And  then  Captain  Noah,  for  the  first  time  during  the 
long  interview,  made  use  of  what  our  foreign  friends 
call  the  great  American  asset — "bluff."  His  next  re 
mark  was  merely  a  guess,  but  he  made  it  as  if  it  were 
based  upon  absolute  knowledge. 

"You  forgot  to  tell  her,"  he  repeated.  "And  so  that's 
why  you  paid  Calvin  Wentworth  blackmail — so  he'd  for 
get  to  tell  her,  too,  I  presume  likely." 

Plainly  this  man  knew  everything.  It  was  useless  to 
fight  him  longer.  Balaam  groaned,  collapsed,  and  sur 
rendered. 

Not  that  it  was  a  complete  and  unconditional  surrender 

326 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

in  the  beginning.  The  defeated  one  fought  for  every 
point  in  the  negotiations.  When  the  Mayo  paper  of  set 
tlement  had  been  signed  the  argument  concerning  the 
stock  transfer  began.  Balaam  almost  wept  when  the 
blank  check  was  placed  before  him. 

"I  can't  do  it,  Cap'n  Newcomb,"  he  whined.  "I  can't. 
Besides,"  as  a  bright  idea  occurred  to  him,  "  'tain't  likely 
I  keep  a  five  thousand  dollar  balance  in  the  Trumet  bank 
every  day,  is  it?" 

The  captain  smiled.  "Not  every  day,  I  know  you 
don't,  Balaam,"  he  said.  "But  I  know,  too,  that  you've 
got  it  there  today  because  yesterday  you  deposited  the 
money  you  got  from  sellin'  that  Ostable  property." 

Mr.  Griggs's  anger  blazed  up  again. 

"Who  told  you  that?"  he  demanded.  "If  them  bank 
folks  have  been  tattlin'  about  my  account  I'll " 

"There,  there!  nobody  told.  I  was  right  astern  of 
you  in  the  line  at  the  teller's  window.  You  didn't  no 
tice  me,  I  cal'late,  "but  I  saw  you — and  the  deposit  slip, 
too.  I'd  been  waitiri'  for  that  money  to  come  in,  Balaam. 
I  knew  you  was  expectin'  it,  and  so  I  was  anxious  to  get 
hold  of  you  this  morm'n'  afore  you  could  invest  it  again." 

Balaam  glared,  growled,  groaned  and  picked  up  the 
check. 

"I — I  think  you're  mighty  hard  on  me,  Cap'n,"  ke 
said.  "I  never  thought  you  could  be  so  hard  on  any 
body  that's  been  as  friendly  to  you  as  I  have." 

Noah  laughed  delightedly.  "That's  it,  Balaam,"  he 
cried;  "keep  it  up.  I  was  expectin'  somethin'  like  that 
from  you,  and  I'd  have  been  disappointed  if  you  hadn't 
lived  up  to  my  hopes.  You  ought  to  be  gilded  and 

227 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

framed,  same  as  I  told  you.  Considerin'  how  soft  and 
tender  you've  been  to  Melissy  and  Obe,  not  to  mention 
Joe  and  a  hundred  other  poor  critters  you've  had  business 
dealings  with,  I —  Here,  you  seem  to  find  it  tough  to 
make  out  that  check.  I'll  do  it  for  you." 

He  took  the  fountain  pen — his  own — from  his  com 
panion's  fingers  and  rapidly  filled  in  the  five  thousand 
dollar  check. 

"There!"  he  exclaimed.  "Now  all  you've  got  to  do 
is  sign." 

"But,  Cap'n  Noah,  I " 

"Sign.     That  weddin'  party's  waitin'." 

"I—    By  thunder,  I  won't !" 

"All  right.  Balaam,  was  you  ever  in  the  Ostable  jail? 
They  say  it's  a  nice  cool  place  in  summer,  and  the  food 
ain't  rich  enough  to  give  you  dyspepsy.  There's  visitin' 
days  every  once  in  a  while.  I'll  be  over  to  look  at 
you  through  the  bars  and  I'll  fetch  the  minister  and — 
fAh,  thanks." 

Mr.  Griggs  had  signed  the  check  and  thrown  the  pen 
savagely  into  the  fireplace.  The  captain  calmly  stooped 
and  picked  it  up. 

"And  here's  your  certificate  for  the  Ostrich  stock," 
he  said.  "Oh,  yes,  wait  a  minute,  here's  my  check  for 
the  balance  of  Melissy's  account." 

He  wrote  the  check  and  handed  it  to  Balaam.  The 
latter  glanced  at  it  and  then  shouted  a  protest. 

"This  ain't  but  three  hundred  and  seventy-five,"  he 
cried. 

"Well,  that's  what  it  ought  to  be,  hadn't  it,  'cordin'  to 
the  figgers  as  I  gave  'em  to  you?" 

328 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

"No.  You've  took  off  five  hundred  for  that  dum  Os 
trich  Minin'." 

"I  know,  but  you've  got  the  stock,  power  of  attorney 
and  all." 

"I  don't  want  it.  It  ain't  no  good.  It  belongs  to  Me- 
lissy  Mayo." 

"Oh,  no,  it  don't.  It  belongs  to  you.  You  bought  it. 
And,  so  far  from  bein'  no  good,  it's  a  great  buy,  and  the 
feller  that  get's  it  at  fifty — to  say  nothin'  of  five — is 
mighty  lucky.  I  know  that's  true,  for  you  said  so  your 
self  to  Obe  Burgess.  And  you  wouldn't  lie,  Balaam, 
you're  too  moral." 

A  moment  later  he  unlocked  and  opened  the  door.  At 
the  threshold  he  turned,  the  key  in  his  hand,  and  ad 
dressed  Mr.  Griggs,  who  was  following  him. 

"Balaam,"  he  said,  "I  hope  you  like  this  shootin' 
camp." 

"Like  it!  No,  by  godfreys,  I  don't  like  it!  And  I 
tell  you,  Noah  Newcomb " 

"Yes,  yes,  I  know.  Well,  I'm  sorry  you  don't  like  it, 
because " 

"Because  what?" 

"Because  I'm  goin'  to  leave  you  in  it  a  spell." 

Before  Balaam  could  reach  him  he  had  stopped  out 
side  and  slammed  and  locked  the  door  behind  him.  His 
next  remark  was  shouted  through  the  crack. 

"Don't  be  scared,  Balaam,"  he  roared.  "I'll  be  back 
for  you  by  and  by.  Fact  is,  I  think  maybe  I'd  better 
cash  that  check  of  yours  afore  you  change  your  mind 
and  have  payment  stopped  on  it.  I'll  drop  in  at  the 
bank  as  I  go  by.  Make  yourself  comfortable  as  you 

329 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

can.     I  wish  I  could  open  a  window  for  fresh  air  for 
you,  but  I  can't,  they're  all  nailed.     So  long." 

He  hurried  away  to  the  car.  Even  above  the  roar  of 
the  starting  engine  he  could  hear  bellowed  pleadings  and 
threats  issuing  from  behind  the  closed  door  of  the  camp. 
The  language  was,  from  a  moral  person,  somewhat  sur 
prising. 

Captain  Noah  drove  at  a  good  clip  back  to  Trumet. 
He  smiled  as  he  drove  and  occasionally  laughed  aloud. 
He  made  a  short  stop  at  the  bank  and  then,  instead  of 
turning  in  at  the  gate  of  the  Burgess  home,  kept  on 
and  stopped  before  the  residence  of  the  gentleman  with 
whom  he  had  spent  the  forenoon,  namely,  Mr.  Balaam 
Griggs.  Another  car  was  waiting  at  that  gate. 

The  captain  went  around  to  the  side  door  of  the  house 
and  knocked.  Miss  Barstow  opened  the  door.  She  was 
very  becomingly  and  prettily  dressed  in  a  new  street 
costume  and  a  new  hat,  and  her  blush,  as  she  greeted 
her  visitor,  was  very  pretty  and  becoming  also. 

"Oh,  here  you  are!"  she  exclaimed.  "We  were  be 
ginning  to  fear  you  weren't  going  to  get  home  after  all." 

"Wouldn't  have  missed  it  for  money,"  declared  Cap 
tain  Noah.  "Now  where's  the  other  party  to  this  under 
handed,  nee-farious  piece  of  piracy  and  kidnappin'?" 

The  other  party  appeared  at  that  moment.  It  was 
Irving  Clifford,  and  he  and  the  captain  pretty  nearly 
shook  each  other's  arms  off. 

"How  are  you,  anyway?"  demanded  Noah.  "And 
how's  Chicago?  And  are  you  prepared  to  sign  away 
your  rights  as  a  free  man  and  a  bachelor  for  the  privi- 

330 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

lege  of  buyin'  this  young  lady's  bunnits  and  shawls  the 
rest  of  your  life?" 

Irving  laughed.  "First  rate  to  the  first  two  questions," 
he  answered,  "and  yes  and  glad  of  the  chance  to  the  last. 
And  how  are  you,  Captain?" 

"I'm  pretty  fit,  thank  you.  What  I  make  believe  is 
my  mind  is  a  little  mite  water-logged  from  doin'  picture 
puzzles,  but  now  that  I've  got  the  last  one  done,  I'm  in 
hopes  it'll  dry  out  again." 

Mary  put  in  a  word.  "Where  is  Mr.  Griggs?"  she 
asked. 

"Yes,   jvhere  is  the  old  rascal?"  asked  Irving. 

Noah  grinned.  "Told  you  I'd  get  him  out  of  the  way, 
and  keep  him  there,  didn't  I ;  eh,  Mary  ?"  he  inquired. 

The  young  lady  nodded.  "Yes,  you  did,"  she  ad 
mitted. 

"But  you  doubted  if  I  could  keep  my  promise  ?  Well, 
I  did.  Balaam  is  a  sportin5  man  just  now.  He's  spend- 
in5  the  day  in  a  shootin'  camp  at  East  Wellmouth." 

"A  shooting  camp?"  repeated  Clifford.  "What  do  you 
mean?  What  is  he  going  to  shoot?" 

The  captain's  grin  became  a  chuckle.  "Well,"  he  said, 
"if  he  had  anything  to  do  it  with  I  cal'late  he'd  like  to 
take  a  shot  at  me.  I'll  tell  you  about  it  by  and  by,  if 
I  get  a  chance;  if  not,  I'll  write.  Speaking  of  writin'," 
he  added,  "I  see  you've  left  him  a  note." 

There  was  an  envelope  propped  against  the  lamp  on  the 
center  table.  It  was  addressed  to  Mr.  Balaam  Griggs. 

Mary  nodded.  "Yes,"  she  said,  "I  wrote  that  Irving 
and  I  had  gone  to  be  married " 

"At  Bayport?     Did  you  say  at  Bayport?" 
22  331 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

"Yes,  I  believe  I  did.    Why?" 

"Oh,  nothin'.  I  happened  to  mention  that  I  was  tear- 
in'  myself  away  from  his  company  on  account  of  havin' 
to  go  to  a  weddin'  at  Bayport.  I'm  afraid  he's  liable  to 
guess  whose  weddin'  'twas.  Dear,  dear!  Well,  I'll  face 
the  music.  I  cal'late  'twill  be  a  lively  jig  tune;  he  was 
tunin'  up  for  it  when  I  left  him.  What  else  did  you 
write,  Mary?" 

"I  wrote  that  after  we  were  married  we  were  going 
to  Chicago  to  live.  I  said  that  I  knew  all  about  the 
money  Father  left  me,  and  that  I  should  expect  it  to  be 
turned  over  to  me  at  once.  If  this  was  done  within  a 
month  I  would  not  prosecute,  nor  would  I  tell  anyone 
what  he  had  done.  Then  I  said  good-by,  that  was  prac 
tically  all." 

"Humph!  That  note'll  be  somethin'  of  a  shock  to 
him,  won't  it?" 

"Yes,  I'm  afraid  it  will.  He  is  a  scamp,  I'm  afraid, 
and  he  has  treated  me  abominably  in  some  ways,  but — 
I  can't  help  feeling  a  little  sorry  for  him." 

Captain  Noah  nodded.  "I  understand,"  he  said.  "Ba 
laam's  meaner  than  a  vinegar  pie  and  he'd  cheat  his  deef 
aunt  out  of  her  ear  trumpet.  He's  gettin'  only  about  half 
what  he  deserves,  and  he'd  ought  to  be  put  in  jail.  I  let 
him  off  easy  this  mornin' — but,  consarn  him,  I'm  sort  of 
sorry  for  him,  too,  and  my  conscience  has  been  troublin' 
me  ever  since  I  left  him.  If  I  didn't  have  any  more 
sense  than  my  conscience  has  I'd  apply  for  a  berth  at 
the  Idiots'  Home. 

"But  there,"  he  added,  "here  we  are  floatin'  around 
these  moorin's  and  there's  that  Bayport  parson  waitin' 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

with  his  watch  in  one  hand  and  his  empty  pocketbook 
in  t'other.  Is  this  your  satchel,  Mary?  Good!  All 
aboard  for  the  rites  of  padlock,  as  the  feller  said." 

A  few  moments  later  two  automobiles,  one  containing 
Irving,  Mary  and  various  suitcases  and  bundles  and  the 
other  Captain  Newcomb,  left  the  Griggs  gate  and  buzzed 
up  Knowles'  Hill  and  on  toward  Bayport. 

Miss  Sarepta  Hatch  and  Mrs.  Elvira  Ginn  who,  with 
noses  pressed  flat  against  their  respective  front  windows, 
saw  them  go,  had  enough  to  talk  about — even  for  them 
to  talk  about — during  the  rest  of  that  day  and  for  sev 
eral  days  thereafter. 


CHAPTER   XX 

WHEN  Captain  Noah  returned  to  the  Burgess 
home  that  afternoon  he  was  in  a  state  of  mind 
which  might  perhaps  be  described  as  divided. 
He  had  said  good-by  to  Mary — no  longer  Mary  Barstow 
— and  to  Irving,  and  the  thought  that  he  should  see 
neither  of  them  for  some  time  was  not  altogether  pleas 
ant.  They  were  not  very  old  friends;  he  had  known 
them  but  a  few  months,  but  somehow  or  other  they  had 
grown  into  his  affections  astonishingly.  He  and  they 
had  promised  to  write  and  he  had  half  promised  to  visit 
them  at  Chicago  in  that  vague  future  popularly  known 
as  "some  of  these  days." 

They  had  been  quietly  married  at  the  house  of  the 
Congregational  minister  at  Bayport,  and  the  captain  had 
been  the  only  witness  of  the  ceremony.  He  had  seen 
them  aboard  the  train  at  the  Bayport  station  and  had 
waved  his  hat  until  the  last  car  disappeared  in  the  dis 
tance.  Then  he  climbed  into  his  own  automobile  and 
headed  for  the  shooting  camp  and  the  rescue  of  the  in 
carcerated  Balaam.  The  other  car,  that  in  which  Mary 
and  Irving  had  journeyed  to  Bayport,  was  to  be  taken 
back  to  Trumet  by  one  of  the  garage  hands. 

334 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

Mr.  Griggs  was  voluble  and  threatening  when  Cap 
tain  Noah  unlocked  the  door  of  the  camp  and  let  him 
out.  The  captain  listened  to  the  torrent  of  vituperation 
for  perhaps  a  mile  of  their  trip  homeward.  Then  he  put 
in  a  few  words  of  his  own. 

"That's  all  right,  Balaam/'  he  said ;  "go  as  far  as  you 
like.  Have  the  law  onto  me,  have  me  taken  up,  sue  me 
for  damages,  do  anything  you  want  to.  Only — and  I 
want  you  to  nail  this  to  your  main  truck  so  'twill  stick 
there  and  you'll  never  forget  it — don't  you  dare  say  one 
word  to  a  livin'  soul  about  Joe  Kenney's  stealin'  that 
money  or  his  aunt's  backin*  him  in  it.  That  lie's  got  to 
die  a  quick  death  and  a  quiet  one,  and  there  mustn't  be 
any  preachin'  over  the  remains.  And  don't  you  ever 
dare  hound  another  cent  out  of  Melissy,  either.  As  I 
say,  go  as  far  as  you  like  with  me  for  shuttin'  you  up  in 
that  camp  this  forenoon.  Sue  me,  if  you  feel  like  it,  and 
cal'late  you  can  risk  the  fireworks  that  suit'll  start  up. 
But  you  let  Melissy  Mayo  and  her  nephew  alone ;  d'you 
hear?" 

Balaam  ground  his  teeth.  "Suppose  I  don't  let  'em 
alone  ?"  he  growled.  "What'll  you  do  ?  You  won't  dast 
to  go  to  no  court  with  it." 

His  companion  turned  his  head  and  regarded  him 
steadily.  "I  cal'late  with  that  signed  statement  of  yours 
I  could  have  a  pretty  good  time  even  in  court,"  he  de 
clared.  "But  I  shouldn't  go  to  any  court.  I'd  come 
straight  to  you  and  inside  of  ten  minutes  I'd " 

"What?" 

"Drown  you,"  said  the  captain.     "Now  let's  change 

335 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

the  subject.  Looks  as  if  there  was  a  breeze  springin* 
up ;  maybe  we'll  have  rain  tomorrow,  eh  ?" 

So,  between  sorrow  at  parting  from  Mary  and  Irving 
and  satisfaction  at  the  complete  overthrow  of  Mr. 
Griggs,  Captain  Noah's  emotions  were,  as  has  been  said, 
divided.  But  there  was  no  division  in  those  of  Obadiah 
Burgess  when,  after  supper,  his  friend  took  him  up  to 
his  room  and  there  restored  to  him  the  five  thousand 
which  he  had  considered  lost  forever. 

"But,  Cap'n  Noah,"  begged  the  little  man,  after  his 
first  spasms  of  incoherent  exclamations  and  thanks  had 
spent  themselves,  "for  the  d-dear  land  sakes  how 
d-d-dud-did  you  d-d-dud " 

"Cut-out's  open  again,  Obe,"  interrupted  the  captain, 
with  a  smile.  "How  did  I  do  it — that  was  what  you 
had  your  popgun  loaded  with  then,  wan't  it?  Um-hm. 
Well,  I'll  tell  you.  I  says  to  Balaam,  'Balaam,  says  I, 
*I  know  you  wouldn't  take  advantage  of  another  human 
critter  for  anything  in  this  world,  not  knowin'ly  you 
wouldn't.  Obe  has  a  kind  of  feelin'  that  he'd  rather 
have  his  five  thousand  than  he  would  that  pretty  stock 
certificate  you  sold  him.  I  know  you'd  love  to  oblige 
him  by  tradin'  back/  And  Balaam,  he  bust  out  cryin' 
and  said  he  hadn't  been  able  to  sleep  nights  for  fear 
he  might  have  charged  you  fifty  cents  more  than  that 
stock  was  worth  and " 

Mr.  Burgess  interrupted.  "Go  'long!5'  he  exclaimed. 
"He  didn't  feel  as  bad  as  all  that,  did  he?" 

Noah  looked  at  him  long  and  solemnly.  Then  he 
slowly  shook  his  head.  "Obe,"  he  observed,  "do  you 
know  why  a  blind  man  never  reads  a  comic  paper?" 

336 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

"No,  course  I  don't.    What's  that  got  to  do—" 

"Well,  the  answer  is,  because  he  can't  see  a  joke/' 

"Can't  see  one!  Course  he  can't!  Can't  see  nothin* 
if  he's  blind,  can  he?  I  don't  call  that  very  sensible 
t-t-talk." 

"Don't  you?  I'm  surprised.  Then  let's  be  sensible. 
You  know  what  Scriptur'  says — somethin'  about  'Come, 
let  us  reason  together'?  Um-hm.  Well,  that's  what 
I  said  to  Balaam.  And  Balaam,  he  came  and  we  rea 
soned." 

"Sho !  I  was  kind  of  afraid  he  wouldn't  listen  t-t-to 
reason  much  as  all  that  comes  to." 

"He  did.  And  it  came  to  five  thousand,  which  is  a 
pretty  reasonable  total,  too.  Are  you  satisfied?" 

"Satisfied?  Oh,  Cap'n  Noah,  I  don't  know  what  to 
say  to  you.  I  don't  know  how  t-t-to  thank  you.  I  swan 
to  man,  I " 

He  was  pretty  close  to  tears  and  the  captain  saw  it. 

"There,  there !"  he  cried,  hastily.  "I  don't  want  any 
thanks.  I  haven't  done  anything — except  live  on  you 
free  gratis  for  nothin'  all  summer.  Don't  talk  any  more 
about  it.  Let's  talk  about  yourself  and  your  plans. 
Now  that  you've  got  your  five  thousand  back,  how 
much  of  your  Aunt  Sarah's  windfall  is  there  left?" 

They  estimated  and  figured  for  some  time.  When 
the  last  estimate  was  made  and  the  last  figure  set  down 
it  was  a  certainty  that  Obadiah's  twelve  thousand  had 
shrunk  below  ten  and  that  if  he  continued  to  live  and 
maintain  his  present  establishment  it  would  ultimately 
shrink  to  nothing.  The  little  man  was  again  in  a  state  of 
nervous  despair  and  woe. 

337 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

"I  don't  know  how  I  done  it,  Cap'n  Noah,"  he  wailed. 
"I  snum  I  don't  know  how  I  d-d-dud-done  it.  I  never 
meant  to  spend  none  of  the  principal,  but  she  kept 
a-dribblin'  away  here  and  a  d-d-dud-dribblin'  away  there, 
a  leetle  mite  at  a  time,  and — and,  oh,  my  godfrey's 
domino,  now  look!" 

He  was  wringing  his  hands  as  he  had  that  night  when 
the  captain  wormed  from  him  the  secret  of  his  invest 
ment  in  Ostrich  Mining  and  Smelting.  Noah  slapped 
him  cheerily  on  the  back. 

"Brace  up,  Obe,"  he  ordered.  "You  haven't  got  any 
thing  to  sound  distress  signals  for  now.  You're  pretty 
nigh  out  of  the  fog,  as  I  see  it.  Know  how  it  hap 
pened?  How  it  happened  is  as  plain  to  see  as  a  piece 
of  white  stickin'-plaster  on  a  red  nose.  You've  been 
tryin'  to  float  all  creation  without  the  wherewithal  to  do 
it  with,  and  nobody's  got  away  with  that  proposition 
since  Noah — my  namesake — hove  anchor  for  the  last 
time.  You've  got  to  cut  down  your  livin'  expenses, 
that's  all." 

"Yes,  yes.  I  cal'late  most  likely  I  have,  but  how'll  I 
do  it?" 

"Well,  for  one  thing,  Cousin  Calvin  won't  be  with  you 
much  more.  He'll  leave  you  pretty  soon,  I  shouldn't 
wonder." 

"He  will?  He  will?  Then— then  what's  g-g-goin'  to 
become  of  all  the  m-m-money  he'll  leave  when  he  dies  ?" 

"It'll  go  to  buy  water  sieves  to  strain  wind  through, 
I  cal'late.  Don't  set  up  nights  thinkin'  how  you'll 
spend  Cousin  Calvin's  leavin's,  Obe." 

338 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

He  told  what  he  had  discovered  concerning  Mr. 
Wentworth.  Mr.  Burgess  listened,  his  mouth  open. 

"Well,  I  snum !"  he  exclaimed,  aghast.  "Then — then 
his  comin'  t-t-to  die  cmto  me  was  just  a  scheme  t-t-to 
live  onto  me,  that's  all." 

"Just  about." 

Obadiah  clenched  his  fists.  "By — by  godfreys,"  he  ex 
claimed,  "you  just  wait  till  he  gets  back  from  New  York 
or  wherever  'tis  he's  gone,  I'll  f-f-fix  him.  I'll  g-g-give 
him  somethin'  he'll  remember." 

Noah  grinned.  "What'll  you  do  to  him,  Obe?"  he 
asked. 

Mr.  Burgess  reflected.  "I — I  won't  speak  to  him," 
he  declared.  "If  he  c-c-comes  to  the  d-dinner  table  I'll 
get  right  up  and  go  off  and  leave  him." 

He  could  not  in  the  least  understand  why,  at  the  an 
nouncement  of  this  dreadful  threat,  the  captain  put  back 
his  head  and  shouted  with  laughter.  But  when  his 
laugh  was  over  Noah  settled  down  to  sober  considera 
tion  of  the  problems  involved. 

"To  be  real  honest  with  you,  Obe,"  he  said,  "I'm 
afraid  you  haven't  got  enough  income  to  carry  on  this 
place  of  yours.  I  cal'late  'twould  break  your  heart  to 
sell  it,  eh?" 

Obe  did  not  look  broken-hearted  at  the  idea. 

"I  don't  know's  'twould,"  he  replied.  "I— I've  been 
thinkin*  maybe  I  might  sell  it.  Fact  is,  Cap'n  Noah,  it's 
got  to  be  a— a  kind  of  c-c-cuk-care  on  my  shoulders, 
lately,  and  I'm  kind  of  sick  of  it,  as  you  might  say.  If 
I  sold  it  I  could  travel,  I  cal'late,  and  you  know  I  t-t-told 
you  I  just  loved  to  travel." 

339 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

His  friend  smiled.  "Um — yes/'  he  said,  dryly.  "Well, 
Obe.  I  wouldn't  travel  too  fur,  not  if  you  ever  wanted 
to  get  back,  I  wouldn't.  But  suppose  you  did  sell;  who 
would  you  sell  to?'* 

Obadiah  looked  knowing.  "Oh,  I've  had  offers,"  he 
boasted.  "Them  Bay  Shore  Land  Company  folks  of 
fered  me  twenty-five  hundred  cash  only  last  July.  I  told 
you  then,  but  you  thought  t-t-t'wan't  enough." 

"It  wasn't.  This  house  and  land,  with  this  view,  is 
worth  every  cent  of  four  thousand  for  just  a  summer 
place.  I  wouldn't  swear  but  what  you  could  get  five  for 
it,  if  the  right  feller  came  along." 

Mr.  Burgess  did  some  more  reflecting.  Then  he  ven 
tured,  timidly,  "You  wouldn't  want  to  buy  it,  yourself, 
would  you,  Cap'n?  You  know  you've  told  me  a  good 
many  times  how  much  you  liked  it." 

Cap'n  Noah  laughed.  "What  on  earth  would  I  want 
of  it,  an  old  hulk  like  me,  driftin'  round  from  Dan  to 
Beersheba,  and  no  home  port  in  sight?"  he  asked.  "I'll 
be  haulin'  out  of  here  pretty  soon,  Obe,  now  I've  got 
you  out  of  your  snarl,  and  then  land  knows  where  I'll 
be.  But,"  with  a  wistful  look  out  of  the  window  at  the 
bay,  a-shimmer  in  the  starlight,  "if  I  was  figgerin'  to 
make  fast  and  settle  down  I  don't  know  of  any  snug 
harbor  that  would  suit  me  better'n  this.  I  could  have 
consider'ble  fun  fixin'  this  place  up  and  spendin'  money 
on  it." 

Obadiah  had  a  brand-new  proposition  to  offer.  "Cap'n 
Noah,"  he  said,  "I  presume  likely  you  wouldn't  want 
t-t-to  t-t-take  care  of  my  money  for  me,  would  you  ?  I 
ain't  fit  to  take  care  of  it  by  myself  and  I  know  it. 

340 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

C-c-couldn't  you  kind  of  k-k-keep  it  for  me  and  let  me 
have  it,  little  at  a  time,  like  reg'lar  wages,  say  ?  Maybe 
I  could  m-make  it  last  then/'  he  suggested,  hopefully. 

The  captain  shook  his  head.  "  'Fraid  that  might  be 
too  big  a  responsibility  for  me,  Obe,"  he  answered. 

Obadiah  nodded.  "Course  I  realize  'twould  be  con- 
sider'ble,"  he  observed,  "on  account  of  the  income  bein' 
so  small  now.  But,"  eagerly,  "what's  the  reason  I 
c-c-cuk-couldn't  make  some  more;  b-buy  some  stocks, 
or  somethin'  ?" 

His  friend  whirled  in  his  chair  to  stare  at  him. 

"Buy  stocks?"  he  repeated.  "You — buy  stocks!  For 
thunder  mighty  sakes,  haven't  you  had  enough  stock 
buyin'  to  last  you  one  spell?" 

Mr.  Burgess  was  unconvinced.  "Well,"  he  declared, 
stubbornly,  "I  got  out  of  that  all  right.  I  got  my  money 
back.  I  d-d-didn't  lose  nothin'." 

Captain  Noah  was  silent  for  a  full  minute.  Then  he 
rose  from  his  chair.  "You  go  to  your  room  and  turn 
in,  Obe,"  he  commanded.  "I'll  think  over  that  takin' 
care  of  your  money  notion.  And  say,"  he  added,  as  the 
little  man  obediently  turned  to  the  door,  "you  don't 
walk  in  your  sleep,  do  you  ?" 

"No,"  indignantly,  "course  I  don't." 

"Well,  all  right.  Then  you  probably  won't  get  up  and 
try  to  turn  over  any  of  your  capita]  afore  mornin'.  Good 
night,  Obe." 

Mr.  Burgess  went  to  his  room  and  to  bed,  but  the 
captain  did  not  retire,  not  then.  He  looked  at  his  watch, 
found  it  to  be  only  nine  o'clock,  and  then  descended  the 
stairs  to  the  sitting  room.  Joe — or  Joash — had  gone 

341 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

out.  The  housekeeper  was  sitting  alone  by  the  center 
table,  mending  stockings.  She  looked  up,  nodded  and 
smiled  when  he  entered,  but  she  did  not  speak.  Captain 
Noah  took  a  chair  and,  after  regarding  her  for  a  few 
moments  in  silence,  went  straight  to  his  subject. 

"Melissy,"  he  began,  "I've  got  somethin'  to  tell  you — 
somethin'  important." 

She  dropped  the  stocking  in  her  lap  and  turned  to 
gaze  at  him. 

"Somethin'  important  ?"  she  repeated,  slowly.  "Oh, 
it  isn't — it  isn't  bad  news,  is  it?" 

"I  hope  it  ain't.  I'm  kind  of  hopin'  it'll  be  good  news 
for  you.  The  only  thing  that  makes  me  hesitate  about 
tellin*  it  is  for  fear  you'll  think  I've  been  interferin' 
where  I  hadn't  any  business,  meddlm'  where  it's  none 
of  my  affairs.  Part  of  it  was  my  affairs,  'twas  really 
what  I  came  here  to  Trumet  to  do,  but  t'trther  part — 
your  part — was  just — well,  I  just  felt  I'd  got  to  do  it, 
no  matter  what  you  said.  The  truth  had  come  to  me 
little  by  little  and  it  made  me  so  bilin'  mad  that  I — 
that  I " 

Mrs.  Mayo  interrupted.  "Cap'n  Noah,"  she  broke  in, 
quickly,  "what  are  you  talkin'  about  ?  Don't  explain  or 
apologize  any  more;  tell  me  what  you  mean." 

So  the  captain  told  .icr,  told  of  his  receiving  Obadiah's 
letter  of  appeal,  df  his  coming  to  Trumet,  of  his  dis 
covery  that  his  former  coofc  was  being  systematically 
cheated,  of  his  own  suspicions  and  beliefs  in  the  begin 
ning,  and  then  of  his  gradual  unearthing  of  the  trufli. 
Then  he  went  on  to  tell  of  his  interview  with  Balaam 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

Griggs  that  forenoon  and  of  the  "settlement"  between 
them. 

"I  hope,"  he  said,  earnestly,  in  conclusion,  "that  you 
won't  blame  Joe  for  tellin'  me  about  losin'  the  money 
up  to  Gloucester  and  the  way  Balaam  was  squeezin'  you 
for  it.  Twan't  Joe's  fault  for  tellin',  really  'twan't.  I 
had  the  ends  of  the  strings  all  in  my  hands  and  I  just 
scared  the  yarn  out  of  him,  I  guess.  The  fact  is,  Me- 
lissy,  I — I  just  had  to  know  it,  that's  all.  'Twas  plain 
as  day  that  Balaam  was  grindin'  you  somehow  or  other ; 
I've  watched  you  sufferin'  under  it  ever  since  I  came 
here,  and  as  I  came  to  know  you  better  and  better  the 
harder  'twas  to  watch.  I  swore  to  myself  that  I'd  stop 
it,  and  the  only  way  I  could  stop  it  was  by  findin'  out 
the  whole  truth.  So  there  'tis ;  it's  done.  I  hope  you'll 
forgive  me  for  doin'  it,  but  whether  you  do  or  not,  as 
I  say,  it's  done — it's  stopped.  Eh?  Did  you  say  any 
thing?" 

She  had  not  said  anything,  nor  did  she  speak  now. 
She  was  leaning  forward,  one  elbow  upon  the  arm  of  her 
rocking  chair  and  her  head  upon  her  hand.  Her  face 
was  in  the  shadow  and  he  could  not  see  it.  He  looked 
at  her  expectantly,  waited  a  moment,  and  then  went  on. 

"Here's  the  agreement  I  had  him  sign,"  he  said,  tak 
ing  it  from  his  pocket  and  laying  it  in  her  lap.  "You'll 
notice  it's  a  settlement  in  full  and  that  he  swears  he  be 
lieves  Joe  never  stole  the  money.  As  fur  as  I  can  see, 
Melissy,  he  can't  ever  make  any  more  trouble  for  you." 

Still  she  did  not  answer,  nor  did  she  even  look  at  the 
paper  in  her  lap.  He  rose  to  his  feet. 

"Well/'  he  said,  "I  cal'late  that's  about  all  there  is  to 

343 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

you  can  hardly  realize  what  these  last  two  and  a  half 
years  have  been  to  us  both." 

She  went  on  to  tell  of  her  life  since  her  husband's 
death;  of  her  sister,  whom  she  had  loved  so  dearly;  of 
the  latter's  death  and  the  leaving  of  her  only  son  in  Me 
lissa's  charge. 

"She  loved  him  even  more  than  most  mothers  love 
their  sons,  always  seemed  to  me,"  said  the  housekeeper. 
"And  when  she  died  she  charged  me  to  keep  him  and 
bring  him  up  same  as  she  would  if  she'd  lived.  Well, 
I've  tried  to  do  it.  And  Joe's  a  good  boy,  too,  and  a 
bright  one.  He'd  do  well  at  what  he  liked,  I'm  sure. 
But  that  awful  scare  he  had  when  he  lost  Balaam's 
money,  and  the  thoughts  of  state's  prison  always  hangin' 
over  him,  kind  of  broke  his  ambition,  as  you  might  say. 
He  ain't  been  the  same  since." 

"He'll  be  all  right  now,"  declared  Captain  Noah, 
heartily.  "I've  got  some  plans  of  my  own  for  him.  I'll 
tell  you  about  'em  in  a  day  or  two,  after  I  get  'em  a  little 
better  worked  out.  Joe'll  be  all  right,  I'll  bet  on  it.  But 
what  I  want  from  you,  Melissy,"  he  added,  earnestly, 
"is  to  hear  you  say  that  I  did  right  in  takin'  your  affairs 
into  my  hands  and  doin'  as  I  did  with  Balaam." 

Her  eyes  brimmed  again  at  the  words. 

"Oh,  haven't  I  told  you  ?"  she  whispered.  "I— I  want 
to  thank  you,  but — but  I  can't — not  now." 

"No,  no,  you  don't.  Nothin'  to  thank  me  for;  I 
just " 

"There  is  everything  to  thank  you  for.  Noah  New- 
comb,  I  think  you  are  the  best  man  I  ever  knew." 

He    laughed    aloud.      "Your   acquaintance   has   been 

345 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

say.  I  hope,  after  you've  thought  it  over,  you'll  come 
to  realize  that  I  did  it  just  out  of — er — friendship,  that's 
all.  I'd  ought  to  have  asked  your  permission  to  do  it, 
I  suppose  likely,  but,  you  see,  I — well,  I  was  pretty  sure 
you'd  say  no  if  I  did  ask.  I  thought  it  ought  to  be  done 
—and  I  haven't  changed  my  mind.  Er — good  night, 
Melissy." 

He  turned  to  the  door.  But  now  she  raised  her  head 
and  spoke. 

"Wait,  Cap'n  Noah,"  she  said.  "Please  don't  go- 
yet." 

He  turned  back.  Then  he  saw  that  her  eyes  were  wet. 
It  was  the  second  time  he  had  seen  them  so,  and,  as  on 
the  first  occasion,  the  sight  stirred  him  to  a  fierce  resent 
ment.  This  woman  must  not  cry,  not  only  for  her  own 
sake,  but  for  his.  And  yet  now  it  was  he,  Noah  New- 
comb,  who  had  made  her  cry. 

"Melissy,"  he  pleaded,  "I'm  terrible  sorry  if  I've  done 
what  I  shouldn't.  I — I  hope  you  won't  feel  too  hard 
towards  me." 

She  looked  at  him  in  wonder. 

"Hard  towards  you?"  she  repeated.  "7  feel  hard  to 
wards  you?  What  can  you  mean?" 

"Well — well,  you've  been  cryin'  and  I — I  thought " 

She  smiled  through  her  tears.  "You  didn't  make  me 
cry,"  she  said;  "at  least  if  you  did  it  was  only  because 
you  have  been  so  good  to  me  and — and  I  couldn't  help 
cryin'.  Oh,  Noah,  what  shall  I  say  to  you?  What  can 
I  say?  And  Joe,  too,  poor  boy!  You've  lifted  a  load 
that's  been  a  heavy  one,  I  can  tell  you.  I  don't  believe 

344 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

kind  of  limited,  I'm  afraid,  Melissy,"  he  said.  "Here, 
where  are  you  goin'?" 

She  had  risen  and  was  on  her  way  to  the  stairs. 

"I  am  goin'  to  my  room,"  she  said.  ''If — if  you  don't 
mind  I'd  like  to  be  alone  a  little  while.  Some  other 
time — tomorrow,  perhaps — we  can  talk  about  the  money 
I  owe  you " 

"Owe  me?    You  don't  owe  me  anything." 

"Of  course  I  do.  I  owe  you  the  money  you  paid 
Balaam  when  you  took  over  the  debt.  I  owe  that  and  I 
certainly  shall  pay  it,  every  cent  of  it.  It  may  take  some 
time,  for  after  I  leave  here  I  may  not  be  able  to  earn 
much  right  away,  but " 

Captain  Noah  interrupted. 

"After  you  leave  here?"  he  repeated.  "You  ain't 
goin'  to  leave  here,  are  you?" 

"Of  course  I  am." 

"But  what  for?" 

"What  for?  You  know  what  for.  You  know  that 
Obadiah  Burgess  doesn't  need  a  housekeeper  any  more 
than  he  needs  that  Wentworth  man  to  live  on  him.  I 
suppose  you'll  get  rid  of  Mr.  Wentworth  pretty  soon, 
Cap'n ;  you  seem  to  be  able  to  do  'most  anything.  Well, 
you  won't  have  to  get  rid  of  me  and  Joe.  We  shall  go 
of  our  own  accord." 

"Melissy !" 

"There,  there!  I  didn't  mean  it,  Cap'n  Noah.  I 
know  you  don't  want  to  get  rid  of  us.  It's  we  ourselves 
that  will  feel  we  ought  to  go.  Thank  you.  I— I  wish 
I  could  thank  you  enough,  but  I  can't— and  I  mustn't 
try ;  if  I  do  I  shall  cry  again.  Tomorrow,  perhaps,  we'll 

346 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

talk  it  all  over.  I'm  happier  tonight  than  I've  been  for 
'most  three  years  and — and  you —  Good  night." 

"But,  hold  on !  Melissy !  I  ain't " 

She  had  closed  the  door  and  he  heard  her  going  up 
the  back  stairs  to  her  room.  Soon  afterwards  he  went 
up  the  front  stairs  to  his  own.  He  did  not  sleep  well 
that  night ;  his  mind  was  a  curious  jumble  of  thoughts, 
some  pleasant,  some  otherwise,  some  wildly  absurd. 
He  lay  awake  for  hours,  idly  wondering  and  planning 
concerning  his  own  future.  Of  course,  now  that  the 
"picture  puzzles"  were  done,  now  that  Obadiah  was  ex 
tricated  from  his  difficulties,  he,  Noah,  would  probably 
soon  be  leaving  Trumet.  There  was  nothing  to  keep 
him  there.  And  yet  he  had  come  to  like  the  quaint  little 
old  village.  It  seemed  more  like  home  to  him  than  any 
other  place  on  earth.  But  he  had  no  home.  What  a 
useless,  shiftless,  shifting  life  his  was,  anyhow !  And  so 
on,  and  so  on,  until  long  after  midnight.  And  when  he 
awoke  the  next  morning  his  first  conscious  thought  was 
that  Melissa  Mayo  was  going  away  and  going  soon.  And 
the  idea  was  no  more  pleasant  or  reconcilable  to  him 
then  than  it  had  been  i.he  night  before. 

As  was  his  custom  when  perplexed  or  troubled,  he 
went  for  a  ride  in  his  auto  that  morning.  He  returned 
at  dinner  time  to  find  Joash  at  the  foot  of  the  table  where 
the  housekeeper  usually  sat. 

"Melissy's  gone  to  Bayport,"  explained  Obadiah. 
"She's  been  cal'latin'  to  go  for  'most  a  week.  Wanted 
to  do  some  shoppin'  over  there  at  the  hardware  store, 
some  kitchen  things  for  the  house,  you  know.  Snow, 
up  to  the  Comers  here,  don't  keep  no  stock  the  way 

23  347 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

they  d-d-do  over  to  Bayport.  She  went  on  the  mornin' 
t-t-train  and  she's  comin'  back  on  t-t-tonight's.  What 
makes  you  look  so  surprised,  Cap'n  Noah?  Don't  you 
know  she  said  d-d-d-day  afore  yesterday  she  cal'lated 
to  go  today?" 

She  had  said  so,  but  the  captain  had  forgotten  it.  The 
table  looked  particularly  uninviting  and  lonely  without 
her.  After  dinner  was  over  he  went  outside  to  smoke 
his  pipe.  Obadiah  joined  him,  a  broad  smile  upon  his 
face,  and  a  gaudily  wrapped  box  in  his  hand. 

"H-h-have  one,  Cap'n?"  he  inquired,  opening  the  box 
and  extending  it  proudly. 

Noah  regarded  the  box  and  the  row  of  fat,  banded 
cigars  with  surprise  and  some  suspicion. 

"What  in  the  nation?"  he  demanded. 

"Fresh  box  of  Liberty  Maids,"  explained  Mr.  Bur 
gess,  proudly.  "First  I've  had  for  a  long  spell.  Now 
I've  g-g-got  my  money  back,  kind  of  thought  I  c-c-could 
afford  to  celebrate  a  little  mite.  And  Balaam  didn't  buy 
'em  for  me,  neither,"  he  added. 

The  captain  accepted  one  of  the  "Liberty  Maids,"  not 
because  he  wanted  one,  far  from  it,  but  because  he  did 
not  wish  to  hurt  his  friend's  feelings.  He  delayed  in 
lighting  it,  however.  Not  so  Obadiah,  who  began  to 
puff  like  a  tugboat  and  to  smell  like  a  burning  carpet 
factory. 

"Cap'n  Noah,"  he  observed,  from  the  midst  of  the 
fumes,  "do  you  know  what  I  was  thinkin'  after  I 
t-t-turned  in  last  night?" 

Noah  shook  his  head.    "No,"  he  replied,  "but  I  hope 

348 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

for  your  sake  your  thoughts  wan't  as — er— promiscu's 
as  mine  was." 

Mr.  Burgess  did  not  know  what  "promiscuous"  meant, 
but  he  did  not  let  that  fact  trouble  him. 

"No,"  he  said,  "they  wan't.  I  ain't  subject  to — er— 
them  things  very  much.  But  I  got  t-t-to  thinkin'  after 
I  turned  in,  and  the  more  I  thought  the  more  it 
s-s-seemed  a  p-p-pup-pity  to  me  that  you  wan't  goin'  to 
be  the  one  to  own  this  house." 

The  captain  smiled. 

"I  know,  Obe,"  he  said,  "but,  the  way  I  look  at  it,  it 
would  be  more  of  a  pity  if  I  did  own  it.  What  would  I 
do  with  it?" 

"Why,  live  in  it,  of  course.  That's  what  folks  gener 
ally  d-d-do  with  houses,  ain't  it  ?" 

"Not  if  they're  all  alone  in  the  world,  the  way  I  am." 

"Why  not?  I'm  all  alone  just  as  much  as  you  be  and 
I've  been  1-1-livin'  here,  ain't  I?" 

His  friend's  smile  broadened. 

"I  shouldn't  say  that  you'd  been  livin'  alone  exactly, 
Obe,"  he  observed.  "And  now  that  there's  a  prospect 
of  all  hands  of  us  clearin*  out,  you  want  to  go,  too." 

Mr.  Burgess  nodded.  "That's  'cause  I'm  so  dead  sot 
on  travelin',"  he  declared.  "It's  different  with  you.  You 
t-t-told  me  more'n  once  that  you'd  like  nothin'  better 
than  to  spend  the  rest  of  your  d-d-days  right  here  in 
Trumet  in  this  very  house." 

"But  not  alone,  Obe,  not  alone." 

"All  right,  and  that  brings  me  up  alongside  of  what 
I  was  thinkin'  last  night.  I  was  thinkin'  why  didn't  you 
g-g-get  married?  Yon  ain't  old — that  is,  you  ain't  so 

349 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

d-d-darned  old.  Why  don't  you  get  married,  Cap'n 
Noah.  Then  you  could  buy  this  house  and  live  in  it  and 
you  wouldn't  be  alone.  .  .  .  What  are  you  lookin'  at  me 
like  that  for?  There  ain't  n-n-nothin'  the  matter  with 
me,  is  there?" 

For  the  captain  was  staring  at  him  in  bewildered  and 
blank  amazement.  Slowly  he  shook  his  head.  "I  don't 
know,"  he  muttered,  "I  declare  I  don't  know  whether 
there  is  or  not.  You  ain't  a  spirit  medium  or  a  mind 
reader  or  anything  like  that,  are  you,  Obe  ?" 

"Eh?    I  ain't  what?" 

"A  mind  reader?  One  of  those  fellers  who  can  tell 
what  another  feller's  thinkin"  about?" 

"One  of  them  town  hall,  'Now  what  do  I  hold  in  my 
hand,'  critters?  No,  course  I  ain't." 

"Umph!  And  yet  you  was  thinkin'  that  fool  thing 
after  you  turned  in-!  Humph !"  And  then,  with  a  side 
long  glance  at  Hie  little  man's  face,  he  axlded:  "Didn't 
go  so  far  as  to  pick  out  somebody  for  me  to  marry,  did 
you,  Obe  ?" 

Obadiah  looked  important  and  wise.  "Why  yes,  I 
did,"  he  said.  *I  rim  over  quite  a  number  of  names. 
Finally,  though,  I  kjnd  of  settled  down  to  one,  as  you 
m>m-might  say." 

"Oh,  you  did,  eh?    Well — er— who's  the  lucky  one?'* 

"Why,  Miss  Sarepty  Hatch  down  the  road  here.  She 
ain't  never  been  married  and  I  shouldn't  wondej  if.  ... 
Here !  What  did  you  do  that  for  ?  Wrhere  you  goin'  ?" 

For  Captain  Noah  at  the  mention  of  Miss  Hatch's 
name  had  risen,  stared  at  his  friend  as  if  to  make  sure 
the  latter  was  serious,  and  had  then,  after  kribcking  Mr.. 

350 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

Burgess's  hat  over  his  eyes,  walked  briskly  off,  his 
shoulders  shaking.  And  he  would  not  come  back,  al 
though  Obadiah  shouted  several  urgent  invitations. 

But  he  did  return  later  on,  however.  The  ex-cook 
was  in  the  woodshed  chopping  up  pine  boughs  for  kind 
ling,  when  the  captain  looked  ir  at  the  window. 

"Say,  Obe,"  he  asked,  and  he  seemed  embarrassed, 
"think  it's  goin'  to  rain,  do  you?" 

It  was  a  cloudless  afternoon.  Mr.  Burgess  was,  natu 
rally,  surprised  at  the  question. 

"Rain?  No,"  he  snorted,  disgustedly.  "Course  'tain't 
g-g-goin'  to  rain.  What " 

"Er — what  time  does  that  down  train  get  here  this 
evenin',  d'you  know?" 

"Same  time  it  generally  does,  I  cal'late.  That's  half- 
past  seven,  if  it's  on  time.  But  you  knew  that. 
What " 

"Humph!  'Bout  a  twenty  minutes'  run  from  Bay- 
port,  ain't  it?  That  would  make  it  leave  there  about 
7:10.  And  it's  only  half-past  four  now.  That  would 
give  me  time  enough,  lots  more  than  enough." 

"What  ails  you,  Cap'n  Noah?  What  are  you  mum- 
blin'  to  yourself  about?" 

But  the  captain  did  not  answer.  A  moment  later  Oba 
diah,  peering  from  the  woodshed  door,  saw  him  climk 
into  his  automobile,  which  had  been  standing  by  the 
gate,  and  drive  away. 

Mrs.  Melissa  Mayo,  her  shopping  finished,  was  sitting 
upon  the  jackknife-scarred  bench  adorning  the  platform 
of  the  Bayport  railway  station.  She  was  waiting  for  the 
train  which  was  to  take  her  back  to  Trumet,  and  the  wait 

351 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

was  likely  to  be  a  long  one,  for  it  was  scarcely  half- 
past  five.  She  was  thinking  deeply  when  her  medita 
tions  were  disturbed  by  the  sound  of  her  name.  And 
the  voice  which  called  that  name  was,  oddly  enough, 
that  of  the  very  person  of  whom  she  had  been  thinking. 

"Melissy !"  shouted  Captain  Noah.    "Hi,  Melissy !" 

He  was  seated  in  the  little  car,  and  when  he  saw  that 
he  had  attracted  her  attention  he  opened  the  door  and 
stepped  down  to  the  road.  Then  he  beckoned  to  her. 

"All  aboard,  Melissy,"  he  said.  "Heave  ahead !  Boat's 
waitin'  at  the  dock." 

She  rose  and,  picking  up  her  bundles,  walked  toward 
the  car.  He  hastened  to  take  them  from  her. 

"Why,  Cap'n  Newcomb !"  she  exclaimed.  "What  in 
the  world  are  you  doin'  way  over  here?'* 

The  captain's  embarrassment,  so  apparent  when  he 
questioned  Mr.  Burgess  through  the  woodshed  window, 
was  still  with  him. 

"Why — why,"  he  stammered,  "I — I  was  just  over  here 
and — and — I  happened  to  see  you  sittin'  there  and " 

"Happened  to  see  me!  You  couldn't  have  seen  me 
when  you  first  called.  You  hadn't  come  past  the  corner." 

"Hadn't  I?  Sho!  I  want  to  know!  Well— er— I 
didn't  mean  I  happened  to  see  you,  exactly.  I  meant  I 
knew  you  was  over  here  to  Bayport " 

"Oh,  Obadiah  told  you,  I  suppose." 

"Eh?  Oh,  yes,  sartin,  Obe  told  me.  And  so  I— I— 
er — I  was  out  for  a  ride — didn't  have  anything  else  to 
do,  you  understand — and  I  just  thought  I'd  hunt  you 
up  and  see  if  you  didn't  want  to  ride  home  along  with 
me.  This — er — Pancake  of  mine  ain't  quite  so  big  as 

352 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

a  train  of  cars,  but  it  can  go  about  as  fast  as  some  of  the 
trains  down  here,  and  when  you  cal'late  it's  goin'  to  be 
at  a  sartin  place  at  a  sartin  time  it's  'most  generally 
there.  Which  you  can't  always  say  of  trains — our  trains, 
anyhow.  Eh,  now?  Eh?  What?" 

"Mercy  on  us,  Noah !"  exclaimed  the  housekeeper. 
"How  fast  you  do  talk  today!" 

"Do  I  ?  Want  to  know !  Must  be  a  little  mite  nerv 
ous,  I  guess  likely." 

"Nervous !     I  didn't  know  you  could  be  nervous." 

"Didn't  you?  So  did  I.  I  mean — well,  never  mind. 
What  do  you  say,  Melissy?  Goin'  to  get  aboard  and 
take  a  cruise  in  the  good  ship  Pancake,  are  you?" 

She  smiled.  "Why,  of  course  I  am,"  she  replied. 
"And  I'm  ever  so  glad  of  the  chance.  I  was  gettin' 
dreadful  tired  of  sittin'  on  that  depot  platform.  It's  real 
kind  of  you  to  think  of  me,  Cap'n  Noah." 

The  captain  did  not  answer.  He  stowed  the  pack 
ages,  Mrs.  Mayo's  purchases,  in  various  places  about  the 
car,  helped  her  in,  climbed  to  his  own  seat  beside  her 
and  put  his  foot  upon  the  button  of  the  self-starter.  The 
engine  started,  so  did  the  ca«r,  and  they  soon  left  Bay- 
port  behind. 

Mrs.  Mayo  chatted  a  good  deal  as  they  whirred  along 
through  the  stretch  of  woods  between  Bayport  and 
South  Trumet,  but  her  companion  said  very  little.  He 
seemed  very  much  preoccupied  and,  as  he  had  said — 
although  it  was  a  most  unusual  condition  for  him — nerv 
ous.  After  a  time  the  housekeeper,  getting  no  answers, 
or  very  absent-minded  ones,  to  her  questions  and  re 
marks,  also  lapsed  into  silence.  Occasionally  she,  glanc- 

353 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

ing  at  the  captain's  face,  saw  his  lips  moving.  He 
seemed,  so  she  thought,  to  be  practicing  some  speech, 
rehearsing  something,  learning  it  by  heart.  She  could 
not  understand  his  manner,  which  was  decidedly 
strange. 

They  passed  through  the  hamlet  of  South  Trumet, 
by  the  garage  in  which  the  "Pancake"  had  received  its 
overhauling  after  the  accident  which  led  to  Noah's  first 
meeting  with  Irving  Clifford,  and  entered  the  last  three- 
mile  stretch  of  hilly,  curvy  road  separating  them  from 
Trumet  itself.  The  last  house  in  South  Trumet  had 
been  left  behind  and  there  were  pine  groves  on  both 
sides  of  the  road,  dusky,  shadowy  pine  groves  in  which 
the  early  September  twilight  was  already  deepening-, 
when  Noah  suddenly  spoke. 

"Melissy,"  he  said,  "I've  been  thinkin*  over  what  you 
told  me  last  night  and  I  can't  have  it  so." 

"Can't  have  what  ?  What  do  you  mean,  Cap'n  Noah  ?" 

"Can't  have  you  haulin'  up  anchor  and  leavin'  Obe's 
house  and — and  all  of  us  for  good.  You  mustn't  do  it." 

"But  I  must.  You  know  I  must.  Surely  you 
wouldn't  have  me  sponge  my  livin',  and  Joe's  livin', 
from  Mr.  Burgess  any  longer." 

"Ain't  any  question  of  Joe's  livin'.  I've  got  some 
plans  about  Joe  and  his  livin'.  Don't  you  remember  I 
told  you  I  had  ?  They  may  work  out  or  they  may  not — 
although  I  think  they  will — but  anyhow  Joe'll  be  looked 
after.  It's  you  I'm  thinkin'  about,  Melissy." 

She  smiled  a  trifle  sadly.  "You  needn't  worry  about 
me,  Cap'n  Noah/'  she  said.  "Earnin'  my  own  livin'  is 

354 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

no  new  trick  for  me.  I've  had  to  do  it  almost  all  my  life. 
Don't  you  worry  about  me ;  I  shall  be  all  right." 

"Well,  then,  how  about  me  ?" 

"You?    Why,  what  do  you  mean?" 

"I  mean  what  I  say.  Look  here,  Melissy,  how  am  I — 
well,  what's  goin'  to  become  of  me?  That's  what  I  want 
to  know." 

She  did  not  seem  to  understand.  "Become  of  you  ?" 
she  repeated.  "Why,  you — you  will  be  no  different 
from  what  you  were  when  you  came  here,  so  far  as  I 
can  see." 

He  shook  his  head.  "Then  you  can't  see  very  fur," 
he  said,  with  decision.  "I'm  as  different  as  a  china  nest 
egg  is  from  the  real  article ;  they  l»oth  look  somethin'  the 
same  outside,  but  that's  as  far  as  the  likeness  goes. 
When  I  come  h^re  I  was  a  sort  of  easy-goin',  happy-go- 
lucky  feller,  who  had  made  his  pile — not  a  very  big  one, 
but  enough — and  all  I  was  figgerin'  on  was  sort  of 
driftin'  around  from  one  port  to  another  until  I  foun 
dered.  But  ever  since  I  got  here  to  Trumet  I've  been 
changin'  and  my  notions  and  ideas  have  been  changing 
too.  My  notion  of  happiness  used  to  be  no  owners  and 
no  responsibilities,  nothin'  to  own  and  nothin'  to  care 
for.  Do  you  know  what  my  notion  of  happiness  is  now, 
Melissy?" 

Her  attention  had  been  attracted  by  the  eccentric 
course  of  the  car,  which  was  veering  from  side  to  side 
of  the  narrow  road  as  its  pilot,  in  his  growing  agitation, 
jerked  the  steering  wheel  back  and  forth.  So  her  answer 
was  given  rather  absent-mindedly. 

355 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

"No,  I'm  sure  I  don't,"  she  said.  "But-— but,  Noah, 
what  makes  us  jiggle  around  so?  Be  careful,  do." 

The  captain  did  not  answer  her  question  nor  hear  or 
heed  her  caution.  He  had  reached  the  point  he  had 
been  leading  up  to  now,  and  nothing  short  of  an  earth 
quake  could  have  diverted  his  attention  from  that  point. 
The  "jiggling  around"  continued  and  so  did  Captain 
Noah. 

"I'll  te!l  you  what  my  notion  of  happiness  is  now,"  he 
said,  earnestly.  "It's  to  own  that  house  and  land  that 
Obe  Burgess  owns  now.  To  own  it  and  furnish  it  new 
mostly,  and  fix  up  the  grounds  and  have  a  garden,  make 
a  home  of  it,  you  understand.  And — and  this  is  the  real 
important  part,  Meliss'r — to  have  you  to  live  in  it  along 
with  me.  That's  my  idea  of  bein'  happy.  Do — do  you 
cal'late  you  could — could  help  me  to  get  that  happi 
ness?" 

He  had  rehearsed  this  speech,  or  the  substance  of  it, 
a  good  many  times  in  the  last  few  hours.  And  now,  to 
his  chagrin,  he  saw  that  she  did  not  wholly  understand. 

"Me?"  she  repeated.  "You  want  me — you  want  me 
to  keep  house  for  you?" 

The  captain  gave  a  jerk  at  the  wheel  that  sent  the 
car  almost  into  the  sandbank  at  the  side  of  the  road. 
He  jerked  it  savagely  in  the  other  direction  and  the 
automobile  shot  over  the  brow  of  a  long  hill  and  began 
the  descent. 

"Housekeep  be  darned!"  roared  Captain  Noah.  "I 
want  you  to  be  my  wife.  Will  you,  Melissy?" 

"Oh!"  she  exclaimed,  faintly,  and  that  was  all. 

"Will  you,  Melissy?"  pleaded  the  captain. 

356 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

Still  she  did  not  speak. 

"For  the  Almighty's  sake,  don't  say  you  won't !  If 
you  say  that  I — I  swan  I  don't  know  what  I'll  do." 

"Oh,  Noah,  how  can  I  ?  ...  Oh,  look  out  1" 

The  last  was  a  faint  scream.  If  it  had  been  a  very  loud 
one  there  was  excuse  sufficient.  For  Noah,  in  his  eager 
ness  to  hear  her  answer,  had  permitted  the  car,  as  it  ran 
down  the  long  slope  of  the  hill,  to  approach  close  to  the 
bank  on  the  left ;  and  now,  in  his  stress  of  feeling  caused 
by  that  answer,  he  had  jerked  the  wheel  half  around  and 
the  auto  was  shooting  directly  into  the  ruins  of  what, 
on  the  right  of  the  road,  had  once  been  a  rail  fence.  Mrs. 
Mayo  was  conscious  of  the  splintering  and  cracking  of 
wood,  then  of  a  succession  of  rockings  and  bumpings. 
She  was  also  dimly  conscious  of  the  fact  that  her  com 
panion  was  no  longer  on  the  seat  beside  her,  but  was 
standing  partially  erect.  Then  came  a  final  bump,  a 
smash  of  glass,  and  a  tremendous  splash. 

When  the  housekeeper  recovered  from  the  shock  suffi 
ciently  to  care  where  she  was,  or  to  realize  that  she  was 
anywhere,  this  is  what  she  saw :  The  car,  with  its  wind 
shield  smashed  to  flinders,  and  its  nose  pointing  back 
in  the  direction  from  which  it  had  come,  was  standing 
with  its  broadside  at  the  very  edge  of  a  little  pond.  The 
waters  of  this  pond,  black  and  forbidding  in  the  evening 
dusk,  were  violently  agitated.  As  for  Captain  Noah 
Newcomb,  he  was  nowhere  in  sight. 

Melissa  was  a  woman  of  considerable  presence  of 
mind.  She  was  not  prone  to  hysterics  and  she  seldom 
lost  her  head.  As  soon,  therefore,  as  she  could  be  sure 

357 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

that  that  head  was  not,  literally,  lost,  she  sprang  to  her 
feet  and  called  her  companion's  name. 

"Noah!"  she  cried.    "Noah,  where  are  yon?" 

There  was  no  answer.  The  waters  of  the  pond  still 
rocked  and  splashed  amongst  the  reeds  on  the  edge, 
that  was  all. 

Mrs.  Mayo  sprang  from  the  car.  She  leaped  out  upon 
the  side  furthest  from  the  pond,  but  she  ran  around  to 
the  other  side. 

"Noah!"  she  cried.    "Oh,  Noah!" 

There  was  no  answer,  but  then  she  saw  him.  He  was 
lying  in  the  water  amid  the  reeds  and  he  was  lying  very 
still.  She  ran  in  beside  him.  The  water  was  shallow, 
fortunately,  and  his  head  was  not  below  the  surface. 

How  she  ever  did  it  she  often  wondered  afterward, 
for  he  was  a  big  man,  but  she  managed  to  drag  him 
ashore.  Then  she  bent  over  him  and  tried  to  see  where 
he  was  hurt. 

"Noah !"  she  begged,  distractedly.  "Oh,  Noah!  Oh, 
my  dear,  my  dear!" 

She  had  his  head  in  her  lap,  and  now  from  that  head 
came  a  faint  voice. 

"Say  that  again/'  it  said.  She  was  so  overjoyed  to 
find  that  he  was  not  dead  that  she  scarcely  noticed  or 
understood  the  words. 

"Oh,  you're  alive !"  she  cried.     "You're  alive !" 

The  voice  made  answer. 

"You  bet!"  it  said.    "Say  that  again,  Melissy." 

"Say  what,  Noah?  What  do  you  mean?  Where  are 
you  hurt?" 

358 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

The  head  in  her  lap  moved,  turned,  and  slowly  Cap'n 
Noah  sat  up. 

"I  ain't  hurt  anywheres  to  amount  to  nothin',  Melisey," 
he  said.  "I — I  yanked  the  Pancake  around  so  sudden 
to  keep  it  from  goin'  into  that  pond  that  it  hove  me 
out  and  cracked  my  head  on  the  mudguard.  Knocked 
me  out  of  time  for  a  jiffy,  that's  all." 

He  struggled  to  his  feet.    She  protested. 

"Oh,  you  mustn't  do  that/'  she  cried.    "You're  hurt" 

"Tell  you  I  ain't  hurt  at  all,"  he  declared.  "I've  got 
worse  knocks  than  that  fifty  times  a  v'yage  when  I  went 
to  sea.  But,"  with  an  attempt  at  a  smile,  "I  hope  I'm  a 
better  navigator  on  sea  than  I  am  on  land.  That's  twice 
I've  drove  this  auto  of  mine  into  a  pond." 

He  stopped  and  stared  about  him. 

"And,  by  the  everlastin',  it's  the  very  same  pond!" 
he  exclaimed,  in  wonderment.  "It's  the  same  pond  I 
dove  into  when  I  met  Irve  Clifford  the  first  time.  Well, 
I  swan !  Humph !"  And  then  he  added,  fervently,  "It's 
a  lucky  pond  for  me." 

She  had  risen  and  was  standing1  beside  him.  She  was 
still  fearful  that  he  had  been  hurt  more  than  he  knew. 

"Lucky!"  she  repeated.  "What  do  you  mean?  Un 
lucky,  I  should  say." 

H£  put  his  arms  about  her.  "Then  you'd  say  wrong, 
my  lady,"  he  cried,  exultantly.  "The  first  time  I  took 
thte  Pancake  in  swimmin*  here  Irve  Clifford  fished  her 
out.  And  Irve's  come  to  be  one  of  my  very  best 
friends.  And  now  'twas  you  that  fishe'ti  me  out,  and  you 
— well,  you're  goin'  to  be  somethin'  more  than  a  friend ; 
you're  goin'  to  be  Mrs.  Noah  Newcomb." 

359 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

She  tried  to  draw  away  from  him. 

"No,  Noah,"  she  protested,  "I  haven't  said  that— I 
tnujtn't  say  it.  Don't  you  see  I  mustn't  think  of  it  ?  I — 
I'm  poor  and  I'm  not  young  any  more  and — and  you'd 
just  have  me  to  take  care  of,  and  it " 

He  laughed  aloud.  "There,  there,  that'll  do,  Melissy," 
he  said.  "We'll  argue  all  that  out  after  we're  married. 
You  called  me  your  dear  just  now  and  that's  all  I  was 
waitin'  to  hear.  That  settled  everything  so  fur  as  you 
and  me  are  concerned,  my  girl,  or  if  it  didn't  this  will." 

And  he  stooped  and  kissed  her. 

The  remainder  of  the  homeward  run  of  the  "Pancake" 
that  evening  was  straighter,  but  considerably  slower 
than  that  which  had  gone  before. 


CHAPTER   XXI 

A  GOOD  many  happenings  may  take  place  in  ten 
days,  and  Captain  Noah  was  thinking  that  very 
thing  as  he  leaned  over  the  front  fence  of  the 
Burgess  place  ten  days  after  he  and  Mrs.  Mayo  rode 
home  from  Bayport  together. 

To  begin  with,  the  Burgess  place  was  the  Burgess 
place  no  longer.  And  it  was  not  the  "Badscom  place," 
either,  as  it  had  been  called  when  he  first  knew  it.  It 
was  the  Newcomb  place  now,  for  he  and  Obadiah  had 
closed  a  deal  and  he  had  purchased  that  portion  of  Aunt 
Sarah  Badscom's  legacy  for  four  thousand  dollars.  Both 
parties  to  the  transaction  were  delighted,  for  the  captain 
had  a  home  at  last  and  the  home  he  most  desired,  and 
Mr.  Burgess  had  in  actual  cash  about  fourteen  thousand 
dollars,  a  sum  which  looked  like  a  De  Rothschild  fortune 
to  him.  As  a  matter  of  fact,  it  was  likely  to  be  nearer 
fifteen  thousand,  for  Captain  Noah  and  Melissa  would 
probably  purchase  the  greater  part  of  his  furniture. 

Obadiah  had  put  the  captain  in  charge  of  the  said  for 
tune.  Noah  had  hesitated  about  accepting  the  responsi 
bility,  but  had  finally  decided  to  do  so.  He  realized  that 

361 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

if  his  former  cook  himself  took  charge  of  it  there  would 
soon  be  another  letter  summoning  him  to  help  extricate 
the  little  man  from  new  tangles.  There  were  plenty 
more  helpful  "friends"  of  the  Balaam  Griggs  type  in  the 
world,  and  the  captain  had  worked  out  all  the  "picture 
puzzles"  he  craved  for  the  present. 

Obadiah  himself  recognized  the  danger  and  strongly 
urged  that  his  friend  act  as  his  financial  guardian. 

"You  take  care  of  it,  Cap'n  Noah,"  he  said.  "You 
t-t-take  care  of  it  and  hang  onto  it  for  me.  There's 
about  eight  hundred  dollars  a  year  interest  c-c-comin' 
to  me  now,  and  that  ought  to  be  enough  for  any  single 
feller  like  me.  A  man  that  wants  more  than  that  is  a 
d-d-dum  hog,  the  way  I  look  at  it.  See  here,  Cap'n,  you 
send  me  that  interest  at  such  and  such  t-t-times  reg'lar, 
and  if  I  write  in  between  times  and  ask  you  for  more  you 
tell  me  to  go  to  t-t-thunder,  will  you?" 

Captain  Noah  laughed.  "Suppose  you  come  yourself 
and  say  you  want  it,  Obe,"  he  suggested.  "What  then  ?" 

Obadiah  did  not  hesitate. 

"Have  me  p-p-put  in  the  crazy  asylum,"  he  said. 
"That's  where  I'd  b-b-belong  if  I  did  that." 

So  it  was  arranged.  And  now  Mr.  Burgess,  the  first 
installment  of  his  interest  in  his  pocket,  had  gone  up  to 
Boston  for  what  he  called  a  "little  vacation."  It  was  not 
likely  to  be  a  long  vacation,  for  his  supply  of  funds  was 
limited ;  but  it  was  the  first  of  the  "travels"  which  he 
was  planning  to  take.  The  captain  had  urged  him  to 
consider  his  former  house  as  a  sort  of  headquarters,  a 
haven  to  which  he  might  return  whenever  the  joys  of 
traveling  grew  stale  or  the  traveling  wherewithal  scarce. 

362 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

"You  can  call  it  your  home  just  the  same  as  everk 
Obe,"  he  said.  "I'll  be  glad  to  see  you  and  so'll  Me- 
lissy,  when  she  comes  to  be  skipper  aboard  this  craft." 

Melissa,  accompanied  by  her  nephew,  had  gone  back 
to  their  former  home  at  Pigeon  Cove  for  a  few  days' 
stay.  There  were  affairs  to  be  settled  there  before  Mrs. 
Mayo  left  for  good,  furniture  to  be  taken  out  of  storage, 
and  similar  matters.  When  she  came  back  she  and  Noah 
were  to  be  quietly  married,  although  no  one  outside  the 
immediate  household  shared  that  secret  yet. 

So  Captain  Noah  was  temporarily  left  alone  in  Trumet 
and  was  sleeping1  in  his  own  home  and  eating  at  the 
Mansion  House.  Just  now — it  was  Sunday — he  was  con 
sidering  going  down  to  that  hostelry  for  dinner.  It  was 
not  a  prospect  to  which  he  looked  forward  with  eager 
ness,  but  he  knew  it  was  time,  because  he  had  heard  the 
train  whistle  at  the  station  a  few  minutes  before,  and 
that  meant  twelve-thirty  at  least. 

He  leaned  over  the  fence,  puffing  lazily  at  his  cigar — 
which,  by  the  way,  was  not  a  "Liberty  Maid" — when  he 
became  aware  that  someone  was  approaching  along  the 
road ;  a  man,  obviously  not  a  Trumet  "native"  and  yet 
someone  whose  walk  was  familiar,  very  familiar.  The 
man  drew  nearer,  swinging  his  cane,  and  languidly 
strolling  on,  and  the  captain  whistled  between  his  teeth. 
The  languid  gentleman  with  the  cane  was  the  missing 
invalid,  he  who  had  left  Trumet  to  be  gone  a  possible 
two  weeks  but  had  been  gone  nearly  five — Mr.  Caivin 
Wentworth. 

Cousin  Calvin  was  a  sight  to  gratify  a  taste  not  too 
subdued  nor  yet  too  florid.  His  clothes  were  new,  his 
24  363 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

hat  was  new,  so  were  his  shoes  and  socks.  His  waist 
coat  was  a  cheerful  check,  his  tie  a  dream  of  beauty. 
Altogether  it  was  quite  evident  that  he  had  availed  him 
self  of  the  opportunity  which  his  visit  to  the  metropolis 
afforded  and  had  been,  as  he  told  Balaam  Griggs  he  in 
tended  to  be,  "touched  up  and  revarnished." 

Captain  Noah  noted  all  those  things  and  smiled.  Mr. 
Wentworth,  becoming  aware  of  the  captain's  presence, 
smiled  also.  There  was  a  touch  of  conscious  superiority 
in  the  Wentworth  smile.  The  Newcomb  smile  might 
have  meant  almost  anything,  or  nothing  in  particular. 

"Afternoon,  Newcomb,"  hailed  Cousin  Calvin,  with 
languid  graciousness. 

"Hello,  Mr.  Wentworth !"  exclaimed  the  captain. 
"Well,  well !  Back  again,  eh?" 

Mr.  Wentworth  admitted  that  he  was  back  again. 
Also  he  deigned  to  inquire  concerning  the  captain's 
health. 

"First  rate,  thank  you,"  declared  Noah,  heartily. 
"Feelin'  fine,  I  am.  And  you  ?" 

"Top  hole,  old  chap."  And  then,  with  the  first  ap 
pearance  of  real  interest  he  had  shown,  he  asked: 
"How's  Sport?" 

Captain  Noah  repeated  the  name. 

"Sport?"  he  repeated.  "Sport?  I  don't  seem  to— 
What's  his  first  name  ?" 

"First  name?  I  say,  what — ?  I'm  talking  about 
Sport — my  dog,  you  know." 

Then  the  captain  seemed  to  comprehend. 

"Oh,  your  dog!"  he  exclaimed.  "The  yellow  and 
black  one  with  the  stepped-on  face.  Sartin,  I  recollect 

364 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

now.  Why,  he's  all  right,  I  presume  likely.  Seems  to 
me  he  was  last  time  I  saw  him." 

A  little  of  Cousin  Calvin's  languor  disappeared.  He 
looked  at  Captain  Noah  with  a  new  expression,  not  of 
suspicion  exactly,  but  as  if  he  were  beginning  to  realize 
there  was  something  peculiar  in  the  latter's  manner. 

"Last  time  you  saw  him?"  he  repeated,  slowly.  ''You 
speak  as  if  you  hadn't  seen  him  for  some  time.  Aren't 
you  living  here  now?" 

The  captain  nodded,  genially.  "Oh,  sartin,"  he  said; 
"I'm  livin'  here,  all  right,  livin'  here  right  along." 

"Then  don't  you  see  the  dog  every  day?" 

"No,  not  every  day." 

"Why  not?" 

"Don't  know.  Don't  get  down  his  way  so  very  often, 
maybe." 

"Down  his  way?  .  .  .  See  here,  what  are  you  doing, 
stringing  me  ?  Isn't  the  dog  here  ?" 

Captain  Noah  smiled  in  innocent  surprise.  "My,  my !" 
he  exclaimed.  "I  thought  you  knew  that.  But  I  sup 
pose  you  didn't.  'Tain't  likely  you  would  know,  come 
to  think  of  it,  because " 

"Know?    Know  what?" 

"Why,  know  that  your  dog  was  down  to  the  Mansion 
House.  They're  takin'  care  of  him  down  there.  It's  all 
right.  Mrs.  Hobbs  says  she  thinks  a  sight  of  dogs,  and 
as  for  Ethelinda " 

"Who  sent  my  dog  to  the  Mansion  House  ?" 

Mr.  Wentworth's  composure  was,  for  him,  unusually 
ruffled.  Captain  Noah  was  mild  and  calm  as  a  foggy 
morning  in  mid-summer. 

365 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

'Why,  I  did/'  he  answered,  cheerfully. 

'You  did?     You  did?     Say,  look  here,  what- 


"Yes,  you  see,  I  tell  you :  He  was  a  good  enough  dog" 
of  his  kind,  I  presume  likely,  though  he  was  so  ever- 
lastin7  homely.  Course  he  couldn't  help  that,  poor  crit 
ter,  but " 

"What  in  the  devil  are  you  talking  about?" 

"About  your  dog.  I'm  tryin'  to  tell  you.  You  see,  I 
could  have  put  up  with  his  homeliness,  but  he  did  eat  so 
like  the  nation  that  I  couldn't  stand  it  any  longer, 
and " 

"You  couldn't  stand  it?     You  couldn't?" 

"No." 

"What  business  was  it  of  yours  ?  Did  you  have  to  pay 
for  what  he  ate  ?" 

"Why,  yes." 

"You  did?  Are  you  off  your  head?  You  don't  own 
this  house,  do  you?" 

"Yes." 

The  answer  was  given  in  the  same  quiet,  cheerful, 
conversational  tone,  but  it  seemed  to  knock  the  returned 
invalid  completely  off  his  mental  pins  for  the  moment. 
He  stared  at  the  speaker,  at  the  house,  and  back  again. 
His  mouth  opened  and  shut  several  times,  but  he  did 
not  say  anything.  Captain  Noah  did  not  say  anything, 
either ;  he  continued  to  smoke  and  to  look  cheerfully  in 
terested  and  anxious  to  please.  At  length  the  Went- 
worth  mouth  managed  to  form  words. 

"You  own  this  house?"  he  demanded.  "You  own  it? 
Do  you  know  what  you're  talking  about?" 

"Yes,  generally  speakin'." 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

"You  own  this  house!    How  long  since?" 

"  'Bout  a  week/' 

"You  mean  you — you  bought  it  of  Burgess?" 

"Um-hm." 

Cousin  Calvin  stared  long  and  hard  at  the  imperturb 
able  and  cheerful  visage  before  him.  And  as  he  gazed, 
an  uncomfortable  conviction  that  what  he  had  just  heard 
was  the  truth  began  to  steal  upon  him.  If  it  was  the 
truth 

"Where's  Burgess  ?"  he  demanded. 

"Gone  travelin'." 

"Traveling?     Traveling  where?" 

"Don't  know.  Just  traveling  I  guess.  Always  wanted 
to  travel,  you  know,  Obe  did,  so  now  I  guess  he's  just 
— er — travelin'." 

"When  is  he  coming  back?" 

"Don't  know." 

Mr.  Wentworth  seemed  to  reflect.  Then  he  stepped 
forward  and  put  his  hand  upon  the  gate.  The  captain, 
leaning  upon  that  gate,  and  pretty  effectually  blocking 
it,  did  not  move. 

"Excuse  me,"  said  Cousin  Calvin. 

"Oh,  sartin  sure,  I'll  excuse  you.  I  could  see  you 
didn't  know  I'd  bought  the  place.  I'll  excuse  you;  no 
hard  feelin's  at  all." 

Wentworth  laughed,  uneasily.  "I  meant  excuse  me, 
will  you,  and  let  me  open  the  gate,"  he  observed. 

Still  the  man  blocking  the  gate  did  not  move. 

"Wanted  to  go  in,  did  you?"  he  inquired. 

"Why — why,  yes,  naturally  I  did." 

"Um-hm.    What  for?" 

367 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

"What  for?" 

"Um-hm.    What  for?" 

"Why,  to  go  to  my  room,"  hotly.  "I've  been  on  the 
road  since  twelve  last  night  and  I'm  tired." 

"That's  too  bad.  Don't  blame  you  for  wantin'  to  go 
to  your  room.  I'd  go  if  I  was  you." 

"Thanks.     Then  suppose  you  let  me  go." 

"I  wouldn't  hinder  you  for  nothin'.  But  you  ain't 
goin'  the  right  way.  Your  room's  down  to  the  Man 
sion  House,  I  suppose.  If  it  ain't  there  I  don't  know 
where  'tis.  There's  where  your  trunk  and  the  rest  of 
your  dunnage  was  sent" 

The  invalid  gasped.  "You've  sent  my  trunk  to  the 
Mansion  House!"  he  shouted,  wrathfully.  "What  for?" 

"Didn't  know  where  else  to  send  it,"  was  the  mild 
reply.  "Obadiah  and  I  didn't  know  what  you'd  want 
done  with  it,  so  we  made  the  best  guess  we  could.  Then 
again  you'd  been  gone  so  long  we  didn't  know  but  you'd 
decided  to  stay  in  New  York  altogether." 

"Stay  there  altogether!  What  would  I  want  to  stay 
there  altogether  for?  You  chaps  were  pretty  damned 
fresh,  if  you  ask  me." 

"Thanks.  I'll  remember  in  case  I  ever  ask  you.  Why 
would  you  want  to  stay  in  New  York  altogether  ?  That's 
just  what  I  said  to  Obe.  'No  man  with  so  many  debts 
around  New  York  as  he's  got/  I  said,  'would  want  to 
stay  there  all  the  time/  You  see,  Mr.  Wentworth,  we'd 
looked  up  your  record  quite  a  long  spell  ago.  How  so 
many  of  those  New  York  store  folks  ever  trusted  you 
beats  me.  It  beat  them,  too,  didn't  it?"  he  added,  with 
a  quiet  chuckle. 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 
Cousin  Calvin's  fists  clenched.     "By  gad!"  he  cried, 


"Yup.  Well,  Obe  kind  of  thought  you  might  have 
married  the  Emmons  woman  and  settled  down.  '  'Cord- 
in'  to  all  accounts,'  says  Obe,  'he  and  she  were  thick 
enough  to  be  married.  Look  at  the  game  the  two  of  'em 
put  on  Irve  Clifford.'  Eh?  What  say?" 

But  Mr.  \Ventworth  had  not  said  anything.  His  usu 
ally  rather  pale  face  was  a  bright  red  and  he  was  per 
spiring  freely.  Also  he  seemed  to  be  tongue-tied,  a  con 
dition  in  which  very  few  people  had  ever  seen  him. 

Captain  Noah  tossed  away  the  stump  of  his  cigar. 

"So,  you  see,  Mr.  Wentworth,"  he  went  on,  "we  didn't 
know  where  to  send  your  things,  and  just  took  a  chance 
and  sent  'em  to  the  Mansion  House.  'Tain't  the  Copley 
Piazza  hotel  exactly,  but  a  healthy  man  can  live  there  —  • 
with  practice.  I'm  eating  there  myself  just  now,  and  I'm. 
fairly  healthy."  He  turned  away  from  the  gate  and 
then  turned  back  again.  "In  case  you  ain't  got  in  those 
dividend  checks  you  were  always  expectin'  when  you 
borrowed  of  me,"  he  added,  "maybe  you  could  make 
some  such  arrangements  as  you  made  with  Obe  —  fix  it  to 
put  the  Mansion  House  in  your  will,  you  know.  So  long, 
Mr.  Wentworth.  Maybe  I'll  see  you  again  some  time." 

He  strolled  up  the  path  and  entered  the  house.  Cousin 
Calvin,  his  face  redder  than  ever,  watched  him  go.  For 
a  minute  longer  the  returned  invalid  stood  there  in  the 
road,  clutching  his  cane  and  swearing  between  his 
clenched  teeth.  Then,  suddenly  recollecting  that  he  might 
be  watched,  and  that  it  would  be  decidedly  wiser  not  to 
advertise  his  discomfiture  throughout  Trumet,  he  turned 

369 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

and  walked  back  toward  the  village.  He  had  no  definite 
idea  as  to  where  he  should  go,  but  he  instinctively  headed 
toward  the  Mansion  House.  His  baggage  was  there  and 
his  dog  was  there,  and  it  seemed  to  him  that  he  might 
as  well  join  them. 

Trumet's  main  street  on  a  Sunday  afternoon  in  autumn 
is  not  a  crowded  thoroughfare.  Nevertheless,  in  front  of 
Snow's  drygoods  and  general  store  there  were  several 
people  standing.  They  seemed  to  be  looking  in  at  the 
window.  As  .ie  passed  it  seemed  to  Mr.  Wentworth  that 
these  people  looked  at  him,  then  in  at  the  window,  and 
then  at  him  again.  And  they  whispered  among  them 
selves.  So  he  looked  in  at  the  window,  too. 

What  he  saw  there,  prominently  displayed  in  the  very 
center  of  the  show  window,  was  a  large  "crayon  enlarge 
ment"  in  a  gorgeous,  not  to  say  flamboyant  frame.  It, 
the  "enlargement,"  was  a  portrait  of  a  two-legged  clothes 
pin  with  a  wooden  face,  its  lower  extremities  clad  in 
thunder  and  lightning  knickerbockers,  standing  above  a 
four-legged  object  which  Inoked  as  much  like  a  dog  as 
it  did  like  anything  else.  Both  man  and  dog  appeared 
to  have  frozen  stiff  and  then  warped  out  of  shape  while 
thawing. 

The  new  arrival  from  the  metropolis  gazed  at  this  ex 
hibit  and  gasped,  gazed  again  and  felt  a  shiver  run  up 
and  down  his  back.  For,  in  spite  of  the  atrocious  color 
and  bad  drawing,  the  likeness  was  there.  The  face  of 
the  clothespin  was  a  caricature  of  his  own.  And,  to 
avoid  all  possibility  of  mistake,  beside  the  frame  was  a 
large  placard  with  the  inscription:  "Crayon  Portrait  of 
Mr.  Calvin  Wentworth  of  New  York.  Done  by  J.  Ken- 

370 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

ney,  Artist.  Orders  for  Similar  Work  Received  Here." 
Mr.  Wentworth  stared  and  stared.  Then  he  made  a 
dash  for  the  door  of  the  store.  It  being  Sunday  that 
door  was  locked,  of  course.  What  the  irate  original  of 
that  crayon  portrait  might  have  done  next  if  left  undis 
turbed  is  a  subject  for  conjecture,  he  might  have  broken 
the  window  perhaps.  But  before  this  rash  deed  could 
be  perpetrated  a  hand  was  laid  upon  his  sleeve  and  a 
voice,  the  voice  of  Uncle  Labe  Bassett,  cried  : 

"Well,  well,  well!  I  do  vum  if  it  ain't  Mr.  Went 
worth  himself  !  When  did  you  come  back,  Mr.  Went 
worth?  Glad  to  see  ye,  sir.  Say  now,  say,  ain't  that 
fine?  Somethin'  of  a  surprise  to  you,  ain't  it?  I  bet 
you!  Cap'n  Noah  Newcomb  had  Joe  Kenney  put  that 
in  there  for  folks  to  see.  The  cap'n  cal'lated  that  all 
hands  would  want  to  look  at  it,  and,  by  gracious  me, 
they  do!  I  never  cared  much  for  Joe's  paintin'  afore 
I  see  this,  I'm  free  to  give  in  that  I  didn't,  but  when  I 
see  that  there  says  I  :  'That  boy's  a  wonder,  that's  what 
he  is,  a  wonder  !'  Look  at  it  now  ;  the  very  image  of  -you, 
Mr.  Wentworth.  How  many  times  I've  seen  you  look 
like  that.  I  says  to  Balaam  Griggs  t'other  day,  says 


Cousin  Calvin  never  learned  what  Mr.  Bassett  said 
to  Balaam  Griggs.  He  tore  his  sleeve  from  Uncle  Labe's 
detaining  grasp  without  even  explaining  that  he  was 
obliged  to  go.  Instead  he  told  the  old  gentleman  where 
he  might  go.  He  broke  through  the  little  group  by  the 
window  and  strode  up  the  street,  lashing  the  weeds  be 
side  the  road  with  his  cane  and  devoutly  wishing  that 
each  decapitated  burdock  stalk  was  Noah  Newcomb. 
24*  371 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

But,  as  he  strode  on,  out  of  the  jumble  of  his  thoughts 
a  new  idea  began  to  shape  itself,  an  idea  suggested  by 
a  name  uttered  by  Uncle  Labe. 

"Balaam  Griggs." 

Balaam  Griggs!  Why,  of  course,  Balaam  Griggs! 
There  was  his  refuge.  There  was  his  Sunday  dinner, 
his  night's  lodging.  Why  not  his  board  and  lodgings 
for  many  days  and  nights  ?  He  took  out  his  pocketbook, 
made  sure  that  a  certain  paper  was  within  it,  and  then, 
his  frown  succeeded  by  a  confident  smile,  walked  briskly 
along  the  lower  road  toward  the  Griggs  domicile. 

Balaam  was  a  moral  man,  as  he  occasionally  stated  in 
public.  Also  he  was  a  pious,  church-going  man  at  times. 
But,  like  some  other  pious  men,  he  seldom  permitted  piety 
and  morality  to  interfere  with  his  business.  The  day  be 
fore  he  had  come  into  possession  of  an  old  chair  which 
had  originally  been  painted  a  bright  green.  On  the  mor 
row,  Monday,  a  prospective  customer  was  coming  to  in 
spect  that  chair.  Therefore  Mr.  Griggs  now,  although 
it  was  Sunday,  was  renewing  the  green  paint  which  in 
places  had  been  knocked  from  the  chair. 

The  door  behind  him  opened.  Balaam,  mentally  scold 
ing  himself  for  not  having  locked  it,  turned,  dripping 
paint  brush  in  hand.  His  mouth  and  eyes  opened  and 
he  gasped  audibly. 

"Ah,  old  scout,"  observed  Mr.  Wentworth,  blithely, 
"improving  the  shining  hour  as  usual,  I  see,  eh?" 

Mr.  Griggs  did  not  answer. 

Cousin  Calvin  stepped  into  the  room,  glanced  about 
over  the  crowded  huddle  of  "antiques,"  and  perched, 
whistling,  upon  the  corner  of  an  ancient — or  reproduction 

372 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

of  an  ancient — table,  having  first  dusted  it  with  a  spot 
less  handkerchief. 

"Still  the  busy  bee,  Uncle,"  he  remarked.  'That's 
the  boy.  Well,  is  there  any  honey  in  the  hive  today?" 

Balaam,  still  clinging  to  the  brush,  which  dripped  ooz- 
ily  upon  the  floor,  spoke. 

"Where  did  you  come  from?"  he  demanded. 

"From  the  broadest  spot  on  Broadway,  old  scout." 

"Huh!  Been  havin'  a  good  time  on  my  money.  I 
cal'late." 

"Your  caFlations  are  well  cal'lated.    I  have." 

"And  what  did  you  come  back  here  for?" 

"I  came,"  Mr.  Wentworth  airily  tapped  his  new  shoe 
with  his  cane,  "I  came,"  he  said,  "because  I  could  no 
longer  stay  away  from  you,  Uncle,  dear.  I  thought  of 
you  so  often.  Your  bright  smile  haunted  me  still,  so  to 
speak." 

He  grinned  as  he  said  it,  for  Mr.  Griggs'  countenance 
was  something  to  see,  although  there  were  no  bright 
smiles  visible  upon  it. 

"Ugh !"  grunted  Balaam. 

"I  agree  with  you.  Have  you  missed  me?  I'm  sure 
you  have.  Well,  you'll  not  miss  me  any  more  because — 
Oh,  by  the  way,  is  it  true  that  that  Newcomb  fellow  has 
bought  out  Burgess,  house  and  all?" 

Mr.  Griggs  grunted  again. 

"Yes,  darn  him,  I  guess  he  has,"  he  said. 

"Darn  him  by  all  means.  Darn  him  and  repeat,  I'm 
with  you.  But,  as  I  was  going  to  say,  you  won't  miss 
me  any  more,  Uncle,  dear.  I'm  going  to  stay  here 


373 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

Balaam  leaned  forward. 

"You're  goin'  to  what?"  he  cried. 

"I'm  goin'  to  stay  here,  live  here,  spend  my  days — and 
nights — here.  You'll  take  me  in,  of  course  you  will. 
How  can  you  refuse?  Eh?  A  man  with  as  tender  a 
heart  as  yours  is." 

^Mr.  Griggs  made  no  answer.  The  hand  holding  the 
dripping  paint  brush  tightened  a  little,  that  was  all. 

Mr.  Wentworth  reached  into  the  pocket  of  his  new- 
coat  and  drew  forth  his  pocketbook.  Opening  the  pocket- 
book  he  extracted  a  paper. 

"I  love  to  read  this,  Uncle  dear,"  he  said.  "It's  my 
meal  ticket,  my  permanent  meal  ticket,  so  to  speak. 
Want  to  hear  it  again?  Do  let  me  refresh  your  mem 
ory.  'But  provided  my  daughter,  the  said  Mary  Barton 
Barstow,  comes  of  age  or  marries,  the  said  trust  held 
by  her  mother,  my  wife,  and  Balaam  Griggs,  my  joint 
executor,  shall  terminate  and  the  said  twenty-five  thou 
sand  dollars  shall  be  hers  without ' " 

He  got  no  further.  The  dripping  paint  brush,  flung 
by  the  Griggs  hand,  struck  squarely  in  the  middle  of  his 
chest,  just  at  the  lower  point  of  the  V  in  the  new  checked 
waistcoat.  It  struck,  and  spattered  much  and  stickily. 

Then  Mr.  Griggs  reached  for  the  paint  pot  itself. 


CHAPTER   XXII 

ABOUT  a  year  after  the  Sunday  upon  which  Mr. 
Griggs  threw  the  paint  brush  Mr.  and  Mrs  Irving 
Clifford,  still  residing  in   Chicago,  received  the 
following  letter  from  Captain  Noah.    They  had  received 
many  from  the  same  source.    The  letter  began : 

DEAR  IRVE  AND  MARY:  I  haven't  written  you  for  a  good 
while,  but  that  isn't  all  my  fault.  Melissa  kept  saying  she 
was  going  to  write  and  so  I  didn't,  waiting  for  her.  Of 
course  she  says  she  didn't  write  because  /  kept  saying  / 
was  going  to  and  she  was  waiting  for  me,  but  you  mustn't 
pay  too  much  attention  to  her. 

Above  this  last  sentence  was  written  in  Melissa's  hand 
writing  : 

And  I  hope  you  know  him  too  well  by  this  time  to  pay 
much  attention  to  him. 

The  letter  continued: 

I  don't  know  as  there's  much  news  to  write.  Things 
here  in  Trumet  are  pretty  much  the  same.  Melissa  and 
me  are  well,  and  I  tell  her  she  gets  younger  and  handsomer 
every  day.  Of  course  it  is  natural  she  should,  being  lucky 
enough  to  have  me  for  a  husband. 

375 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

Another  interpolation  here  in  Mrs.  Newcomb's  hand 
writing  : 

More  of  his  nonsense.  Besides,  I  tell  him  somebody  in 
the  family  ought  to  be  good-looking. 

The  captain  went  on: 

We  are  busy  cleaning  house  and  getting  the  decks  scrubbed 
and  things  lashed  down  and  stowed  aloft  and  alow  for  win 
ter.  We  have  built  on  a  new  ell  on  the  port  side  of  the 
house  and,  besides  an  extra  stateroom  upstairs,  there  is  a 
new  room  on  the  main  deck  that  /  say  is  a  smoking  room. 
Melissa  she  says  it  is  a  sewing  room,  and  so  far  it  does 
seem  to  be,  but  some  of  these  days  I  tell  her  I  am  going 
to  bust  loose  and  smoke  in  it  if  it  turns  out  to  be  the  last 
puff  I  draw.  A  six-foot-three  man  has  to  have  some  rights, 
ain't  he?  He  can't  be  browbeat  and  pounded  around  all  the 
time  by  a  five-foot-three  woman.  However,  joking  to  one 
side,  the  new  rooms  are  tiptop,  and  Melissa  and  me  get  a 
heap  of  comfort  out  of  them. 

Joe's  letters  from  out  West  keep  coming  all  the  time,  and 
are  as  full  of  hurrahs  and  enthusiasm  as  ever.  I  calcu 
late  he  has  to  work  pretty  hard  there  on  Mr.  Snowden's 
ranch,  but  it  don't  seem  to  sicken  him  o~  the  job.  I  am 
real  grateful  to  Mr.  Snowden  for  giving  him  the  chance. 
He  did  it  to  oblige  me,  of  course,  and  my  wife  and  I  appre 
ciate  it.  If  we  ever  take  that  Grand  Canon,  orange  grove, 
'Frisco  cruise  we've  been  talking'  about  so  long  we  mean 
to  make  port  there  at  the  ranch  and  see  Joe  and  thank 
Snowden  personal.  But  I  do  really  believe  the  boy  is 
making  good.  His  boss  wrote  me  that  he  was,  and  his  own 
letters  seem  to  bear  out  the  statement.  So  long  as  he 
don't  try  to  crayon  enlarge  any  of  the  cowboys  and  get 
shot  up  on  account  of  it  I  calculate  he  will  do  pretty  well. 
I  tell  Melissa  that  I  do  hope  he  won't  take  a  notion  to 

376 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

paint  a  picture  of  any  of  the  steers.  He  is  liable  to  be 
tossed  over  the  main  truck  if  he  does.  No  self-respecting 
beef-critter  would  stand  one  of  Joe's  portraits  for  a  minute. 

Speaking  of  Joe  and  his  pictures  reminds  me  of  Cousin 
Calvin  naturally.  I  have  got  some  news  to  tell  you  about 
him,  but  I'll  keep  it  for  the  last,  and  tell  you  about  Balaam 
first.  The  old  scalawag  is  about  the  same  as  ever.  I  met 
Captain  Zeke  Penniman  down  the  road  the  other  day  and 
he  had  a  new  yarn  to  spin  about  Balaam  and  his  antiques. 
Seems  the  old  rascal  had  been  to  an  auction  over  to  Well- 
mouth.  He  never  misses  an  auction,  you  know.  Well,  he 
had  been  to  this  one  and  he'd  bought  a  lot  of  junk  and 
some  old  silver  and  plated  ware  amongst  it.  Soon  as  he 
got  the  plunder  home  and  stowed  away  between  decks  in 
his  robbers'  roost,  the  shed  where  he  keeps  his  antiques, 
out  he  goes  and  hunts  up  Mrs.  Ann  Eldridge,  who  has  got 
money  and  hopes  she  is  a  collector.  Ann  says  she  simply 
does  love  old  curiosities  and  old  things  and  she  never  lets 
one  get  away  from  her  if  she  can  help  it.  Probably  that's  why 
she  married  old  Abner  Eldridge,  for  if  he  ain't  a  genuine 
antique,  and  a  curiosity  at  that,  I  never  laid  eyes  on  one. 
Well,  anyhow,  Balaam  hunted  her  up  and  dragged  her 
down  to  his  thief's  den  to  see  the  wonderful  old  silver  he'd 
got  a  hold  of.  He  had  an  old  tablespoon  there  that  he 
got  up  on  his  hind  legs  and  fairly  cried  over.  Said  'twas 
one  of  a  set  that  Noah  used  aboard  the  Ark,  or  some  such 
matter — used  to  feed  little  Japhet  his  porridge  with  it,  he 
understood.  Words  to  that  effect  anyhow. 

Well,  Ann  she  cried  over  it,  too,  until  she  turned  it  over; 
then  she  saw  what  Balaam  hadn't  noticed,  or  at  least 
hadn't  said  anything  about;  that  was  the  words  "Ocean 
House"  stamped  in  fine  letters  way  up  on  the  handle.  It 
was  a  spoon  that  came  from  the  hotel  at  South  Bayport, 
the  one  that  was  burned  down  four  or  five  years  ago.  But 
do  you  suppose  Balaam  was  fussed  when  she  pointed  the 
name  out  to  him?  Not  a  fuss.  Any  other  swindler  would 

377 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

have  been  tongue-tied,  but  Papa  Griggs  never  turned  a 
hair.  Instead  he  pretended  to  be  more  vainglorious  than 
ever.  That  proved  it  was  one  of  Noah's  spoons,  didn't  it? 
"Ocean  House"  would  be  just  the  name  the  old  chap  would 
call  the  Ark. 

There  was  another  interpolation  by  Mrs.  Newcomb: 

I  do  hope  you  won't  believe  all  this.  Part  of  that  spoon 
story  is  true,  that  about  Ann's  finding  the  name,  but  all  that 
Noah's  Ark  part  is  just  more  of  Captain  Newcomb's  jokes. 
I  have  got  used  to  his  jokes  by  this  time,  but  I'm  always 
afraid  other  folks  won't  understand. 

The  captain  continued: 

So  you  see  Balaam  hasn't  changed  much.  For  months 
and  months  he  didn't  speak  to  me  when  he  met  me  on 
the  road,  but  day  afore  yesterday  he  came  beating  up  to 
windward  of  me  and  asked  me  if  it  was  true  I  was  thinking 
of  buying  Solomon  David's  pasture  land  down  on  the  lower 
bay  front.  Said  he  heard  I  was,  and  if  it  was  so  he  hoped 
I'd  buy  it  through  him,  because  I  knew  what  heavy  losses 
he  had  lately  and  how  much  he  needed  the  commission 
money.  I  calculate  the  losses  was  the  twenty-five  thousand 
of  Mary's  money  that  he  had  to  pay  over  to  her.  What 
do  you  think  of  that?  Balaam  will  get  on  in  this  world, 
I  shouldn't  wonder,  if  he  lasts  long  enough  and  the  world 
lasts.  But  I  think  the  world  is  taking  chances  by  associat 
ing  with  him. 

Obadiah  is  off  again  on  another  traveling  cruise.  He  has 
gone  to  Providence  this  time.  He  won't  stay  long,  because 
I  didn't  let  him  have  but  forty  dollars  to  go  with,  and 
you  can't  stay  very  long  anywhere  on  that  these  days. 
He  is  usually  about  ten  dollars  ahead  of  his  drawing  ac 
count  and,  so  far  as  I  can  see,  Melissa  and  I  will  always 
have  him  as  a  sort  of  permanent  charge  on  our  hands. 

378 


EXTRICATING   OBADIAH 

We  don't  care  much,  though.  If  it  hadn't  been  for  him 
I  shouldn't  be  here  alive  today  and,  besides,  I  rather  like 
to  have  him  around  and  hear  him  talk.  He  sets  off  a  bunch 
of  fire<  "ackers  with  every  sente.ice,  and  when  he  gets  real 
excited  he  talks  like  a  corn-popper.  But  he  is  a  good- 
hearted  little  soul  as  ever  lived,  and  I  think  the  world  of 
him. 

Did  I  write  you  in  my  last  letter  that  he  had  been  to 
Syracuse?  You  remember  he  always  used  to  say  he  wanted 
to  go  on  account  of  that  second  mate  he  sailed  along  with 
once.  That  mate  used  to  get  tight,  you  recollect,  and  then 
sing  "Home,  Sweet  Home,"  to  the  tune  of  Syracuse.  So  Obe 
has  been  set  on  going  to  Syracuse  ever  since.  Well,  he 
went  last  month  and  came  back  some  disappointed.  He 
said  it  was  a  nice  place,  but  it  wasn't  nigh  so  big  as  he 
expected,  said  it  didn't  seem  to  him  any  bigger  than  Bos 
ton.  Seems  that  mate  had  given  him  the  notion  that  Syra 
cuse  covered  two-thirds  of  creation  and  had  a  building 
option  on  the  other  third. 

And  now  I  must  tell  the  news  about  Cousin  Calvin  Went- 
worth.  The  yarn  that  is  going  about  Trumet  just  now  is 
that  he's  going  to  be  married.  Yes,  sir,  married.  What 
do  you  think  of  that?  I  wrote  you  how  he  had  been  living 
at  the  Mansion  House  ever  since  he  left  here.  Well,  he 
has  been  star  boarder  there,  too.  Course  he  can't  have  paid 
any  board,  for  I  know  perfectly  well  he  hasn't  got  any 
thing  to  pay  it  with.  I  imagined  that  he  had  worked  the 
invalid  game  and  the  leaving  everything  in  his  will  trick 
on  Mrs.  Hobbs,  same  as  he  had  on  Obe,  but  now  I  ain't 
so  sure.  Nigh  as  I  can  find  out  Mrs.  Hobbs  and  Ethelinda 
and  all  the  rest  of  the  females  at  the  Mansion  House  fell 
down  and  worshiped  him  when  they  first  saw  him.  That 
high-toned  way  of  his  and  his  city  clothes  and  that  waxed 
mustache  was  too  much  for  'em.  And  he  can  be  mighty 
convincing  and  persuading  when  he  takes  the  trouble  to 
set  that  oily  tongue  of  his  running. 

379 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

Anyhow,  they  say  he  is  going  to  marry  Lavinia  Hobbs. 
Sarepta  Hatch  told  me,  and  she  said  Captain  Penniman 
told  her  this  very  morning.  I  asked  her  what  else  Captain 
Zeke  said,  and  she  said  she'd  be  ashamed  to  tell  me,  said 
his  language  was  enough  to  bring  a  judgment  on  him.  So 
I  calculate  the  captain's  bearings  must  have  been  pretty  hot. 
Well,  it  is  enough  to  make  a  decent  man  swear,  the  idea 
that  any  grown-up  woman  can  be  such  a  fool,  but  that 
kind  of  thing  happens  all  the  time,  so  perhaps  it  ain't  so 
wonderful.  He'll  have  a  soft  snap,  a  home,  and  somebody 
to  work  and  support  him.  She'll  have  I  don't  know  what, 
something  to  put  on  the  parlor  whatnot  maybe,  for  Cousin 
Calvin  is  ornamental,  I  will  give  in.  I  wonder  if  he'll  send 
wedding  cards  to  the  Emmons  woman  in  New  York.  But 
say,  if  he  is  married  I've  got  a  wedding  present  to  give 
Lavinia.  I've  got  that  crayon  tintype  that  Joe  did  of 
Wentworth,  and  as  sure  as  I  sit  here  writing  this  I  shall 
send  it  to  the  bride  on  the  wedding  day.  I  don't  know  how 
pleased  she'll  be,  but  I  know  her  husband  will  be  delighted. 
They  say  he  wanted  to  murder  Snow,  the  storekeeper,  for 
exhibiting  it  in  his  show  window. 

There,  folks,  I  guess  I've  written  the  longest  letter  on 
record  or  thereabouts.  Melissa  and  I  talk  about  you  pretty 
often,  and  some  of  these  days  we  may  be  coming  out  to 
Chicago  to  see  you.  And  of  course  we  are  counting  on 
your  spending  at  least  a  month  of  next  summer  with  us 
here  at  home.  We  want  to  see  you,  you  may  be  sure  of 
that,  but  we  especially  want  to  see  that  new  Clifford.  Judg 
ing  by  his  picture  he  must  be  considerable  of  a  fellow.  Tell 
him  to  hurry  up  and  grow  because  I  want  to  ship  him  as 
second  mate  aboard  that  new  catboat  I  am  planning  to 
have  next  summer. 

Melissa  says  she  knows  I  have  written  you  a  pack  of 
nonsense,  and  that  she  shall  look  it  over  before  she  lets  me 
mail  it.  I  expect  she  will,  for  she  looks  me  over  pretty 
careful  afore  I  do  much  of  anything.  Well,  I  never  took 


EXTRICATING    OBADIAH 

her  advice  yet  that  it  didn't  turn  out  to  be  a  good  thing, 
so  I  am  not  complaining.  She  sends  a  shipload  of  love 
and  good  wishes  ana  so  do  I.  Take  care  of  yourselves, 
both  of  you,  and  of  that  second  mate  of  mine.  And  write 

Yours    right    straight    along, 

No  A  ii  NEWCOMB. 


THE   END 


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